The $5 million settlement awarded to Ashli Babbitt’s family in May 2025 is a hollow gesture for the unarmed Air Force veteran gunned down by Capitol Police Lieutenant Michael Byrd on January 6, 2021. It’s not justice—it’s a Band-Aid on a wound that festers with questions. Byrd, concealed behind a wall, chose a bullet over a baton, pepper spray, taser, handcuffs or a simple shove when Babbitt, a 5’2” woman, poked her head through a broken Capitol window. No warning, no de-escalation—just a .40-caliber Glock fired at near point-blank range. Contrast that with New Jersey Democrats like Rep. LaMonica McIver, who, on May 9, 2025, stormed a gated and guarded ICE facility in Newark, assaulted federal agents, and walked away with arrests, not in body bags. Why the double standard?
Soldiers in Iraq faced enemy soldiers with stricter Rules of Engagement (ROE) and Escalation of Force (EOF) SOP’s than Byrd apparently bothered with. We were to show, shout, shine before we shot a flare pen, warning shot, disabling shot and then finally a lethal shot. Babbitt, wearing a Trump flag cape was no jihadist. She led with her head and shoulders—her most vulnerable body parts—handing Byrd, a 28-year veteran, every chance to restrain her, spray her, or push her back. She never even made contact with her killer. Furthermore, where did the police officers, seen on videos, go who were Infront of the door prior to her being shot? Meanwhile, McIver and company, accused of “forcibly striking” ICE officers, faced cuffs, not coffins, despite their aggressive breach and pushing officers.
Byrd, never coming out of concealment behind a wall, skipped every non-lethal option, claiming he shouted, “get back” (not heard on videos) and feared for Congress’s safety. Soldiers in Fallujah showed more restraint against actual terrorists than Byrd did against a fellow American citizen. In Newark, ICE agents managed to de-escalate a chaotic crowd involving lawmakers and protesters without a single shot fired. Yet Byrd, in a confined hallway and behind a locked door couldn’t muster the professionalism to effectively warn Babbitt or show himself, opting instead to deliver a lethal shot from a “hunting blind” as if he was deer hunting.
The $5 million payout admits Byrd’s failures, but it’s not accountability. It’s a dodge to quiet the truth: a trained veteran cop chose lethal force over basic policing against an unarmed woman, while New Jersey’s “insurrectionists” got off with slaps on the wrist. Next time, Lieutenant, try earning your badge instead of hiding behind it.
