The Capitol Police officer who shot and killed Ashli Babbitt during the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection has been formally exonerated following an internal investigation, NBC News reported.
NBC News obtained an internal memo from Capitol Police which cleared the unnamed officer of wrongdoing during the riot.
The commander of the Capitol Police’s Office of Personal Responsibility emphasized the ruling in a separate memo which stated “no further action will be taken in this matter,” according to NBC News.
Babbitt served in the U.S. military for 14 years and went to two wars. The 35-year-old San Diego native was among thousands of pro-Trump rioters who descended on the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6. Video of the incident shows Babbit, who wore a Trump flag draped around her neck, was shot in her shoulder as she attempted to climb through a shattered window on a door that led to the Speaker’s Lobby of the Capitol.
In April, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced in a statement that the officer who fatally shot Babbitt did not violate any federal laws and he fired at Babbit “in self-defense or in defense of the Members of Congress and others evacuating the House Chamber.”
“Officials examined video footage posted on social media, statements from the officer involved and other officers and witnesses to the events, physical evidence from the scene of the shooting, and the results of an autopsy. Based on that investigation, officials determined that there is insufficient evidence to support a criminal prosecution,” the DOJ statement reads.
Over 570 people have been arrested in connection with the deadly Capitol siege, according to the DOJ. More than 200 defendants have been indicted by grand juries and at least 36 defendants have pleaded guilty. The Justice Department said over 170 individuals have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, including more than 50 rioters who were charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer.