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Despite the lingering uncertainty, Sicknick’s death has become a symbol of the extreme violence of the January 6 riots. House Democrats have repeatedly quoted him during former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial earlier this month, and President Joe Biden paid tribute to Sicknick, who paid homage to Capitol Hill.
More than 100 other police officers from Capitol Hill and Washington, DC, were injured in the riots, some seriously, and two are believed to have died by suicide in the days following the insurgency. Four rioters also died, including one shot dead by an officer defending the chamber of the House.
For nearly two months, Capitol Hill police declined to provide details of the circumstances of Sicknick’s death. Acting Chief Yogananda Pittman told lawmakers on Thursday she viewed it as a “line of duty” death, but said nothing further about the circumstances.
A Capitol Police statement on Friday suggested that further action regarding Sicknick should await details of the cause of his death.
“The medical examiner’s report on the death of Agent Brian Sicknick, which followed the attack on the Capitol on January 6, is not yet complete,” the agency told CNN. “We are awaiting the toxicology results and continue to work with other government agencies regarding the investigation of the deaths.”
Sicknick died at 9:30 p.m. on January 7, Capitol Police revealed in a statement that night, describing him as “injured as he physically engaged with protesters.”
“He returned to his division office and collapsed,” the agency said at the time. “He was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.”
Prosecutors and Capitol Police officials said many participants in the January 6 riot deployed pepper spray, bear spray, mace and other chemical irritants on police. Capitol Police Captain Carneysha Mendoza told a Senate committee on Tuesday that she had observed protesters deploying “military grade CS” gas inside the Capitol itself.
Court officials on Friday unveiled a criminal case against a suspect, Daniel Caldwell of Texas, who claimed in a video recorded Jan.6 that he sprayed officers during a standoff on the Capitol steps.
“According to Caldwell, after the officers sprayed him, Caldwell sprayed at the officer [sic] and believed to have sprayed about 15 agents, ”according to the FBI affidavit in support of the case.
The FBI’s submission, dated February 8, also included screenshots from publicly released videos showing a man suspected of being Caldwell spraying towards officers on Capitol Hill.
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