(DC Pundit) – The Department of Justice just agreed to pay a whopping $5 million to the family of Ashli Babbitt, the unarmed Air Force veteran gunned down inside the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Judicial Watch, a conservative legal watchdog that’s been defending the Babbitt family for years, brought the wrongful death lawsuit in early 2024. The group alleged that Capitol Police Lt. Michael Byrd, the officer who shot Babbitt, was a danger behind a badge and never should have had a firearm in the first place, let alone been put in charge of defending lawmakers.
Their lawsuit lays out what can only be described as a rap sheet of incompetence. Byrd reportedly failed to complete his mandatory firearms training, once left his loaded Glock 22 in a Capitol Visitor Center bathroom, and had previously fired his weapon into a vehicle full of teenagers, striking nearby homes in the process. That’s the kind of résumé that gets most people fired or sued—not promoted.
“Lt. Byrd had a reputation among peers for not being a good shot,” the suit notes. And tragically, on January 6, 2021, that reputation turned deadly when Babbitt, who posed no threat and was clearly unarmed, was fatally shot as she attempted to climb through a broken window into the Speaker’s Lobby. There were police officers behind her, none of whom appeared alarmed or took any action against her, because, unlike Byrd, they could clearly see she was not a threat.
Judicial Watch filed the $30 million wrongful death suit on behalf of Babbitt’s estate and her husband, Aaron Babbitt. It claimed the officer was “incompetent” and “dangerous,” and that any reasonable person in that situation would have recognized that Babbitt didn’t pose a lethal threat to anyone inside the building.
Today @washingtonpost reports:
Nearly $5 million dollar lawsuit paid to the family of Ashli Babbitt⬇️⬇️@michellewittho1 https://t.co/NMQIzNUJwv
— AKuehne🇺🇸 (@WifeOfCombatVet) May 19, 2025
On Monday, the U.S. government finally caved, quietly, of course, and agreed to a $5 million settlement. That’s five million dollars to acknowledge, without actually admitting guilt, that maybe shooting an unarmed veteran without warning wasn’t such a great look for Capitol security.
“This won’t bring Ashli back,” one supporter posted online, “but maybe it’s a step to make sure such a callous killing will not take place again in the U.S. Capitol.”
And here’s a point worth clarifying: Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton hasn’t yet issued a public statement on the deal. But one thing is crystal clear, his organization won’t be taking a third of the payout, which is typically standard in cases like this. That alone speaks volumes about Judicial Watch’s motivation here. It was never about the money, it was about justice.
.@JudicialWatch can't yet comment on the Ashli Babbitt settlement amount that is being reported because the settlement still hasn't been finalized. But I can say, contrary to initial WPOST report, @JudicialWatch is not getting a third (or any portion) of any settlement. We are… https://t.co/Cn35tbXd5H
— Tom Fitton (@TomFitton) May 19, 2025
Meanwhile, Lt. Byrd was never charged. In fact, he was praised by Democratic lawmakers and even received fawning media coverage. Funny how the “unarmed Black man shot by police” narrative only matters to the press when it suits their political needs. In Babbitt’s case, she was a white, Trump-supporting veteran, so her death was written off as collateral damage.
The settlement might not bring justice, but it certainly raises some uncomfortable questions, questions Democrats, Capitol Police brass, and the legacy media would rather you never ask.
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