Four Dead, At Least 52 Arrested After Trump Supporters Storm The US Capitol
Published
Four people have died and 52 people have been arrested after the pro-Trump riots at the Capitol building yesterday, January 6.
Hundreds of rioters stormed the government building in Washington DC, many of them armed, in a bid to disrupt the Congressional certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s Electoral College win.
One woman, who has reportedly been identified as Ashli Babbitt from San Diego, was shot and killed when a huge group were forcibly making their way past police inside the building.
Her identity has been revealed by her husband, who told KUSI she was a 14-year veteran, who served four tours with the Air Force and was an avid Trump supporter.
A disturbing video began circulating on Twitter, showing the woman, who is believed to have been a protester, lying on the floor after being shot in the neck.
According to DC Police Chief Robert Contee, Babbitt was shot by a Capitol police officer, before being ‘transported to a local hospital where, after all life-saving efforts failed, she was announced deceased,’ NBC reports. In the days leading up to the riots, Babbitt had apparently gone to DC without her husband, Metro reports, and earlier this week tweeted, ‘Nothing will stop us…they can try and try and try but the storm is here and it is descending upon DC in less than 24 hours… dark to light!’
The shooting is now being investigated by the police department’s Internal Affairs Division, ‘as we investigate all officer-involved deaths in the District of Columbia, including ones from other agencies’.
Meanwhile, Contee confirmed three others – one woman and two men – have also died, after suffering ‘separate medical emergencies, which resulted in their deaths’ around the grounds of the Capitol.
More than 52 people were arrested during the riots, including 47 violations of the city-wide curfew, brought in by Mayor Muriel Bowser, calling on people to be in their homes by 6.00pm.
‘First Amendment protests have turned violent. Many persons came to the District armed and for the purpose of engaging in violence and destruction and have engaged in violence and destruction. They have fired chemical irritants, bricks, bottles, and guns. They have breached the security of the Capitol and their destructive and riotous behaviour has the potential to spread beyond the Capitol,’ a statement from Bowser’s office read, as per Newsweek.
‘Their motivation is ongoing. Today, they sought to disrupt the Congressional proceedings relating to the acceptance of electoral college votes. President Trump continues to fan rage and violence by contending that the Presidential election was invalid. Persons are dissatisfied with judicial rulings and the findings of State Boards of Elections, and some persons can be expected to continue their violent protests through the inauguration.’
Under the order enacted by Bowser, authorities can ‘disconnect, suspend, or shut-off public utilities,’ change business hours, put curfews in place and ‘exercise operational discretion over all District government departments’.
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Topics: News, Donald Trump, Now, Riots, Shooting, Washington DC
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