On the auspicious day of January 6, 2025, the United States of America celebrated the certification of President-Elect Donald Trump's victory in the November elections.
However, the day was marked with disappointment for the Democratic party, who were grappling with the consequences of their undemocratic ousting of Joe Biden from the presidential race.
According to RedState, the Democrats, predictably, sought solace in focusing on the events of January 6, 2021, a strategy that was unsurprisingly echoed by the media. Among the media personalities, Sunny Hostin, co-host of "The View," drew a disgraceful comparison between the events of that day and historical atrocities such as the Holocaust, World War II, and slavery.
However, the most reprehensible statement came from Merrick Garland, the Attorney General of the Department of Justice. In a press release, Garland stated, "On this day, four years ago, police officers were brutally assaulted while bravely defending the United States Capitol. They were punched, tackled, tased, and attacked with chemical agents that burned their eyes and skin. Today, I am thinking of the officers who still bear the scars of that day as well as the loved ones of the five officers who lost their lives in the line of duty as a result of what happened to them on January 6, 2021."
Garland's statement, however, is a gross misrepresentation of the facts. The five officers he referred to did not die "in the line of duty" as the term is conventionally understood. Four of these officers committed suicide, two of them (Jeffrey Smith and Howard Liebengood) just days after January 6, 2021, and the other two (Gunther Hashida and Kyle deFreytag) within six months of the event. Officer Brian Sicknick's death, which occurred the day after, was due to natural causes resulting from a stroke, as determined by the DC medical examiner.
The actual casualties of that day were Trump supporter Ashli Babbitt, who was shot and killed by Capitol Police officer Michael Byrd, two men (Kevin Greeson and Benjamin Philips) who died of natural causes due to cardiovascular disease, and Rosanne Boyland, whose official cause of death was an amphetamine overdose, although some speculate she was crushed by the crowd at the Capitol building.
The deaths of these officers are being referred to as "line of duty" deaths for several reasons. Firstly, this is how the Capitol Police describe them: "The USCP accepts the findings from the District of Columbia's Office of the Chief Medical Examiner that Officer Brian Sicknick died of natural causes. This does not change the fact Officer Sicknick died in the line of duty, courageously defending Congress and the Capitol."
Secondly, a bill signed into law by Joe Biden essentially classifies them as such, enabling their survivors to collect benefits. A 2023 report states, "The widow of a police officer who died by suicide after he was assaulted during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has been found eligible for a federal benefits program for the families of fallen officers."
Lastly, the primary reason Garland and other Democrats refer to these deaths as "line of duty" deaths is to create the impression that they were killed at the Capitol Building by Trump supporters, a narrative that is not supported by the facts, regardless of the Democrats' and their media allies' attempts to suggest otherwise. The conservative perspective on this matter emphasizes the importance of adhering to the truth and not manipulating facts to serve a political agenda.
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