A Capitol Police officer, Brian Sicknick, has died of injuries he sustained in the Wednesday pro-Trump attack at the U.S. Capitol.
A 12-year veteran on the force, Sicknick was “injured while physically engaging with protesters,” the department said in a statement, and collapsed after returning to his division headquarters before dying at a local hospital.
Sicknick, 42, was a New Jersey native and military veteran.
According to the Capitol Police statement, Sicknick was responding to the riots on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol while on duty and was injured during a physical altercation with members of the mob of Trump supporters who stormed the building.
“He returned to the division office and collapsed,” the department said. “He was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.”
The department wrote, specifically, that he “was injured while physically engaging with protesters.”
The exact circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear.
Nexstar Media Group, which owns several local news stations, reported he was struck in the head with a fire extinguisher and suffered a stroke.
The officer was struck in the head “by a rioter,” according to WGN.
The name of the suspect, or their political affiliation, was not immediately clear.
“It was not clear if the blunt force had killed him; a chemical agent may have led to his death,” The New York Times reported.
The newspaper reported that the FBI is investigating the officer’s death “as a possible federal murder case.”
According to the Capitol Police, Sicknick’s death will be investigated by the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch, the U.S. Capitol Police and their federal partners.
It was the second death to stem from the Capitol riots; a San Diego Trump supporter named Ashli Babbitt was shot and killed by a different Capitol Police officer while coming through a window into a lobby area where members of Congress sheltered after fleeing as the mob came into the Capitol.
Three other people died of medical incidents.
Sicknick was also a former Air National Guardsman who served in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Enduring Freedom.
He became a police officer after leaving the military.
A Twitter account in Sicknick’s name indicates that he was a Donald Trump supporter; the cover photo is Trump’s plane.
On Facebook, his cover photo was of an American flag.
Questions have been raised after the mob got into the Capitol as to why Capitol Police were not better prepared and even milled around inside while rioters were occupying offices, running around the Senate floor.
The chief, Steven Sund, announced he was going to resign after the union head criticized police response, saying officers were “frustrated and demoralized” by it.
Former U.S. Capitol Police Chief Terrance Gainer told The Today Show that the Capitol Police response to the riots was a “failure” and “raises a lot of questions.”
“Clearly there’s failures,” he said. to the television station. “There has to be a lot of more than 50 officers were injured during the Capitol riots and 15 were hospitalized.questions asked and answers given. What is very clear is the police underestimated the violent crowd and the size of it, and they overestimated their ability to control it.”
Democratic Reps. Tim Ryan, of Ohio, and Rosa DeLauro, of Connecticut, who chair the House Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee and House Appropriations Committee respectively, issued a statement after Sicknick’s death.
“Our hearts break over the senseless death of United States Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick, who was injured in the line of duty during yesterday’s violent assault on the Capitol. Our prayers are with his family, friends, and colleagues on the force,” the lawmakers said. “This tragic loss should remind all of us of the bravery of the law enforcement officers who protected us, our colleagues, Congressional staff, the press corps, and other essential workers yesterday.”
DeLauro and Ryan added, “To honor Officer Sicknick’s memory, we must ensure that the mob who attacked the People’s House and those who instigated them are held fully accountable.”
DeLauro and Ryan previously called for a review of the law enforcement response to the riot and the preparation ahead of the events.
More than 50 officers were injured during the Capitol riots and 15 were hospitalized.