WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has reached a preliminary agreement to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of Ashli Babbitt over her shooting by an officer during the U.S. Capitol riot, attorneys said on Friday.
Lawyers for Babbitt's estate and the Justice Department told a judge in Washington's federal court that they have reached a settlement in principle, but the details are still being worked out and the final agreement has not yet been signed. The terms of the settlement have not been disclosed.
Babbitt's estate filed the $30 million lawsuit last year over her fatal shooting when she attempted to climb through the broken window of a barricaded door leading to the Speaker’s Lobby inside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The Capitol Police officer who shot her was cleared of wrongdoing, by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, which concluded that he acted in self-defense and in the defense of members of Congress. The Capitol Police also cleared the officer.
Babbitt, a 35-year-old Air Force veteran from San Diego, was unarmed when she was shot by the police lieutenant when she tried to climb through the door as others in the mob pressed to get into the lobby outside the House chamber.
The lawsuit alleges that the officer, who was not in uniform, failed to de-escalate the situation and did not give her any warnings or commands before opening fire. It also alleges negligence on the part of Capitol Police. The lawsuit says the department “should have known” that the officer was “prone to behave in a dangerous or otherwise incompetent manner.”
“Ashli posed no threat to the safety of anyone,” the lawsuit said.
The Capitol Police officer said in a televised interview that he fired as a "last resort." When he pulled the trigger, he said, he had no idea whether the person jumping through the window was armed.
Capitol Police officials and an attorney for Babbitt's estate didn't immediately respond to emails seeking comment on Friday.
President Donald Trump in January pardoned, commuted the prison sentences or ordered the dismissal of all of the cases of the 1,500-plus people charged with crimes in the riot.
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