On Thursday afternoon, former President Donald Trump issued a statement which merely read "Who shot Ashli Babbitt?"
From the 45th President
— Steve Cortes (@CortesSteve) July 1, 2021
Who shot Ashli Babbitt? pic.twitter.com/ETS0yI2lLX
Babbitt, a 35-year old Navy veteran was shot in the shoulder and killed during the Capitol Hill riot on January 6 as she tried to enter the building through a window. The identity of the police officer who shot her has not been revealed.
In April, the Department of Justice announced that they were dropping the investigation and were not charging the unidentified officer.
Reporting from the Spectator on Wednesday speculated that it was actually a member of Mike Pence's security detail who shot Babbitt:
Sources close to and within the intelligence community tell Cockburn that Babbitt was actually shot by a member of then-vice president Mike Pence’s protective detail. The VP’s detail, of course, is provided by US Secret Service, not the Capitol Police. One person asserted to Cockburn over drinks in DC that this is ‘basically an open secret’ in the intelligence community.
Law enforcement sources suggested to Cockburn that the Capitol Police Department and Department of Justice have publicly identified the shooter as a Capitol Police officer in order to protect the reputation of the Secret Service. Cockburn also wonders if this isn’t an attempt to protect Pence from further anger or threats from Capitol rioters who wanted him to refuse to certify the results of the election on January 6.
Ashli Babbitt's husband, Aaron Babbitt, who learned of his wife's death from watching TV, filed a FOIA request to find out the officer's identity. As I reported last month, Babbitt has been granted a court hearing date for September 3, with the family and their attorney, Terrell Roberts, arguing that the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department failed to comply with the D.C. Freedom of Information Act. There is also a wrongful death suit being brought separately.
Babbitt's death from the Capitol Hill riot is the only one which has been ruled a homicide.
Trump's statement was released at the same time as news was developing that the Trump Organization and its CFO, Allen Weisselberg, were indicted on charges of tax crimes, though they pled not guilty.
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