U.S. to pay nearly $5 million to family of Trump supporter gunned down on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, 2021

The family of Ashli Babbitt, the woman who died after being shot by a Capitol Police officer during the events of Jan. 6, 2021, will receive compensation of nearly $5 million as part of a settlement with the government. This was revealed to the Washington Post by sources familiar with the case.

The settlement, which has not yet been publicly announced, seeks to resolve a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the heirs of Babbitt, an Air Force veteran and ardent Donald Trump supporter. The legal action initially demanded $30 million from the government, arguing that the firing officer did not give advance warning or attempt to control the situation in a nonlethal manner.

A case symbolizing the chaos of January 6.

Babbitt was the only person gunned down by police gunfire during the events at the Capitol. Captured images show the moment she was attempting to climb through a broken window in a door near the House of Representatives chamber, when she was struck by a bullet fired by an officer.

Since January 6, 2021, Donald Trump has defended Babbitt, referring to her as a heroine and denouncing her death as unjust.

For their part, the Department of Justice and Capitol Police absolved the officer involved, claiming he acted in self-defense and as a last resort to protect lawmakers and staff trapped on the grounds. In August 2021, the officer broke his silence in a television interview, noting that at the time of the shooting, he did not know if Babbitt was armed.

However, Babbitt's family members maintained that she posed no imminent threat and that her death could have been prevented. In the lawsuit, they described her as a committed citizen who did not deserve a lethal outcome.

A legal, but not political, closure

The settlement between the Justice Department and Babbitt's estate reportedly does not involve any admission of guilt on the part of the government or the agent involved. It does, however, bring unresolved tensions over the role of law enforcement that day back to the center of the debate.