Nearly four and a half years after Capitol Police Lt. Michael Byrd fatally shot Ashli Babbitt during the breach of the U.S. Capitol, her husband signed a settlement agreement on June 6 to resolve his $30 million wrongful death lawsuit against the federal government.
The settlement includes a payout of $4.975 million, though other terms were not immediately disclosed, The Blaze reported.
“This fair settlement is a historic and necessary step for justice for Ashli Babbitt’s family. Ashli should never have been killed, and this settlement destroys the evil, partisan narrative that justified her outrageous killing and protected her killer,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.
Twenty-five percent of the settlement will be placed in a trust account pending the outcome of a potential claim by Ashli Babbitt’s former attorney, Terrell N. Roberts III. Earlier this year, Roberts filed a motion to intervene in the case, asserting that he is entitled to 40% of any settlement awarded.
Roberts ended his professional relationship with Aaron Babbitt in early 2022. Babbitt’s Washington-based attorney, Richard Driscoll, has since requested that the dispute be resolved through the Attorney/Client Arbitration Board of the D.C. Bar.
Contrary to repeated claims in mainstream media, Judicial Watch handled the wrongful-death lawsuit on a pro bono basis.
While the federal government did not admit liability as part of the settlement, the agreement is seen by some as a tacit acknowledgment by the Department of Justice that Byrd acted recklessly and used excessive force when he emerged from a concealed position near the House Speaker’s Lobby and fatally shot Babbitt as she climbed through a sidelight window just outside the chamber doors.
The wrongful death lawsuit, filed on January 5, 2024, alleged that Byrd acted negligently in handling his Glock 22 sidearm and was reckless when he fired into the crowded hallway outside the Speaker’s Lobby.
The complaint also accused the U.S. Capitol Police of negligence in supervising Byrd, citing his disciplinary record, which includes discharging his firearm at a fleeing vehicle near his residence in 2004 and once leaving his service weapon on a toilet tank in the Capitol Visitor Center.
According to court filings in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, Aaron Babbitt submitted claims against the Capitol Police in June and September 2021, with additional filings in February 2022 and January 2023.
The lawsuit was filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act, naming the federal government as the defendant, including the U.S. Capitol Police as a component agency.
According to the complaint, Byrd fired the shot that struck Ashli, a 14-year Air Force vet, in the left anterior shoulder at 2:44 p.m. on January 6, 2021. The bullet “perforated her left brachial plexus, trachea, upper lobe of the right lung, and second anterior rib before coming to rest in her right anterior shoulder,” the filing states.
“Video recordings show her alive and conscious, writhing uncontrollably immediately after the shooting,” the suit stated. “Ashli remained conscious for minutes or longer after being shot by Lt. Byrd. Ashli experienced extreme pain, suffering, mental anguish and intense fear before slipping into pre-terminal unconsciousness.”
“Furthermore, nothing about the wound track described in the autopsy report would be expected to result in immediate death or instantaneous loss of consciousness,” the suit said, “and Ashli’s lungs contained blood, further confirming that she was alive and breathing after being shot.”
Although Byrd claimed that he feared for his life at the time he shot Babbitt, he “later confessed that he shot Ashli before seeing her hands or assessing her intentions or even identifying her as female,” the lawsuit said. “Ashli was unarmed. Her hands were up in the air, empty and in plain view of Lt. Byrd and officers in the lobby.
“Ashli posed no threat to the safety of anyone,” the suit said.