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Former President Donald Trump has been handed a court victory after a federal judge dropped a civil lawsuit's wrongful death claim filed against him.
Trump was named alongside convicted January 6 rioters Julian Khater and George Tanios in a lawsuit filed by Sandra Garza, the partner of deceased U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick.
Sicknick died one day after the January 6 attack, having been assaulted and sprayed with chemicals by rioters who were storming the Capitol in an ill-fated attempt to stop the certification of President Joe Biden's 2020 presidential election victory.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta dismissed the suit's wrongful death and negligence claims, ruling that Garza lacked standing to bring the claims because she was not married or a legal domestic partner to Sicknick.
However, Mehta allowed part of the lawsuit to continue. Trump and his co-defendants could still be found in violation of Washington, D.C.'s Survival Act and liable of conspiracy to violate civil rights. Garza is seeking $30 million in damages.
Garza lawyer Mark S. Zaid told NBC News that he was "pleased to see that our lawsuit in pursuit of justice for the late Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick" was "permitted to continue."
"We are now considering our next step options, to include deposing former President Trump," he added.
Newsweek reached out for comment to Trump's office via email on Tuesday.
The lawsuit was filed by Garza on January 5, 2023, just one day before the second anniversary of the Capitol attack. The suit's wrongful death claim asserted that Trump and his co-defendants were "directly and vicariously liable" for Sicknick's death.
Garza argued that Sicknick died following "intentional words and actions" by the defendants, claiming that Trump was the "mastermind" behind the Capitol attack and had incited rioters by repeatedly making false claims that the 2020 election was "stolen" from him.
Dr. Francisco Diaz, D.C.'s chief medical examiner, ruled in April 2021 that Sicknick had died of "natural causes" on January 7, 2021, after suffering two strokes, having collapsed in his office shortly after facing the rioters.
Trump has not been charged with any crime directly related to Sicknick's death. However, he is facing 91 felony counts that include charges related to attempts to overturn the 2020 election and the ensuing Capitol attack.
The former president is also facing multiple lawsuits including a case brought by eight Capitol Police officers who say they "were violently assaulted, spat on, tear-gassed, bear-sprayed, subjected to racial slurs and epithets, and put in fear for their lives" on January 6.
A federal appeals court panel allowed the lawsuit to proceed last week while ruling against Trump's claim of immunity.
Trump denies any wrongdoing and claims that all of his legal troubles are part of a "witch hunt" by Democrats and amount to "election interference" while he campaigns as the leading Republican candidate in the 2024 presidential election.
Update 1/2/24, 6:26 p.m.: This article has been updated with additional information and background.
About the writer
Aila Slisco is a Newsweek night reporter based in New York. Her focus is on reporting national politics, where she ... Read more