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Donald Trump has received a summons in a civil lawsuit by Sandra Garza, the longtime partner of U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) officer Brian Sicknick, who died on January 7 after suffering two strokes on the day he responded to the attack on the Capitol, according to reports.
Garza, the legal representative of Sicknick's estate, is alleging that the former president's "campaign of lies and incendiary rhetoric" about the 2020 presidential election led his supporters to storm the Capitol building on January 6, 2021, ultimately playing a "significant role in the medical condition" that caused the officer's death.
"Many participants in the attack have since revealed that they were acting on what they believed to be Defendant Trump's direct orders in service of their country," the lawsuit reads.
"Trump directly incited the violence at the Capitol that followed and then watched approvingly as the building was overrun," it continues. "Trump did all these things solely in his personal capacity for his own personal benefit and/or his own partisan aims."
The civil action, filed in a Washington, D.C., federal court on January 5, names Trump—who's held responsible in his individual capacity—together with two Jan. 6 rioters who attacked Sicknick on the day of the attack, Julian Khater and George Tanios.
The lawsuit says that Khater used a chemical spray brought by Tanios into the Capitol building on Sicknick's face, and that once the officer was incapacitated he moved on to spray other officers. Sicknick collapsed at about 10 p.m. on the same day while he was still in the Capitol building, and though he was rushed to the hospital by paramedics he died less than 24 hours later.
Washington DC's chief medical examiner found that Sicknick had died of natural causes, but noted that "all that transpired on [January 6] played a role in his condition."
The lawsuit filed by Garza alleges that, "through his words and conduct," Trump "endorsed and ratified the violent actions of the mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol," including Khater and Tanios.
"Before directing the mob to the U.S. Capitol, Defendant Trump instructed them to 'fight like hell' and declared that 'you're allowed to go by very different rules' and 'you have to show strength,'" the 47-page lawsuit states. "Defendant Trump intended these words to be taken literally."
Khater and Tanios were arrested on March 14, 2021, for assaulting Sicknick with chemical sprays. The two Jan. 6 rioters weren't charged with causing the officer's death, but for assaulting police officers. Both took plea deals last year.
Garza is seeking $10 million in damages from each of the three defendants, according to the lawsuit.
A spokesperson for Trump quoted by AXIOS minimized the impact of the lawsuit.
"President Trump clearly and unequivocally stated that Americans should 'peacefully and patriotically make their voices heard,'" the spokesperson said in an email statement sent to the publication.
"President Trump is immune from frivolous attacks and will continue to be fully focused on his mission to Make America Great Again."
Tanios' attorney, Beth Gross, said in a statement quoted by The Guardian that "the recent civil lawsuit naming him as a defendant veers well beyond what the facts support and misconstrues Mr Tanios's actual conduct."
About the writer
Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on the U.S. economy, housing market, property ... Read more