Pelosi orders flags at half-staff for Capitol officer who died

“But because of the heroism of our first responders and the determination of the Congress, we were not, and we will never be, diverted from our duty to the Constitution and the American people,” she added, calling for the perpetrator to be brought to justice.

 

Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.), who represents Sicknick’s district, called for the officer to lie in state, a rare honor.

“He made the ultimate sacrifice while protecting those trapped in the Capitol amid a violent assault on our democracy itself. Like others before him who died in defense of the people’s representatives, he deserves to lie in state,” Beyer said.

Sicknick, a 42-year-old military veteran who served on the force for 12 years, was critically injured Wednesday as Capitol Police tried to defend the Capitol building from a mob of President Trump’s supporters. 

 

After over an hour of confrontation with little backup, the mob successfully breached the Capitol, disrupting Congress from certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory.

 

Congress certified the election in the middle of the night, hours after the rioters were cleared from the Capitol.

“This tragic loss should remind all of us of the bravery of the law enforcement officers who protected us, our colleagues, Congressional staff, the press corps, and other essential workers yesterday,” House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch Chairman Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) said in a joint statement following the officer’s death.

Sicknick was one of more than 50 officers injured in the melee, 15 of whom were hospitalized.

The chief of the Capitol Police, and both the House and Senate sergeant-at-arms, have resigned in the aftermath of the events.

Investigations have been opened into the security breach.