Tipsheet

What We Know and Don't Know About the Death of Officer Brian Sicknick

No cause of death has been given for Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who passed away a day after the Capitol riot on Jan. 6. 

Not much has been learned since Capitol Police first put out a statement saying that Officer Sicknick returned to the police precinct and collapsed after engaging with rioters at the U.S. Capitol. According to the statement, Sicknick was then taken to a nearby hospital where he "succumbed to his injuries."  

But after weeks of investigations and more than 200 arrests in connection with the Jan. 6 riot, no suspect has been arrested in connection with the officer's death. 

According to Sicknick's father, his son was pepper-sprayed and hit in the head during the Capitol riot. But according to a CNN report citing a law enforcement official, medical examiners could not find signs that Sicknick sustained blunt force trauma to the head, further discounting claims that Sicknick was fatally struck in the head by a fire extinguisher.  

Police have been analyzing video and camera footage but, so far, no official cause of death has been given to indicate Sicknick's cause of death, whether from an injury, exposure to a chemical irritant, or another cause entirely.

Sicknick's remains were cremated before they were laid in honor in the Capitol Rotunda. The honor is typically a ritual reserved for dead American political leaders. Sicknick's father said his son was a supporter of former President Trump.

The case is being investigated as a homicide by the Metropolitan Police Department's Homicide Branch, the USCP, and federal investigators. The FBI is asking anyone with information to contact them at 1-800-CALL-FBI.