'It's unforgivable and un-American': Girlfriend of cop Brian Sicknick who died in aftermath of Capitol attack slams GOP members of Congress who don't recognize his heroism - as first rioter is sentenced
The partner of Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick has blasted Republican members of Congress who refuse to recognize his heroism after he died the day after defended the building from MAGA rioters on January 6.
On the evening of the riots, Sicknick returned to his division office, and collapsed at about 10pm. He died the following day after suffering two strokes.
Police initially said that Sicknick, who joined the force in 2008, had been injured while engaging with protesters, but the District of Columbia's chief medical examiner ruled in April that he died of natural causes.
On Wednesday, his partner of 13 years Sandra Garza wrote an op-ed for CNN telling how they met, how she found out he had died, and her fury that Republicans in Congress had blocked a commission to investigate the riots.
She wrote: 'To know that some members of Congress — along with the former President, Donald Trump, who Brian and I once supported but who can only now be viewed as the mastermind of that horrible attack — are not acknowledging Brian's heroism that day is unforgivable and un-American.'
Last month, Senate Republicans blocked a proposal to create an independent commission to investigate the events of that day, and in recent weeks, several members of Congress have promoted conspiracy theories that the FBI was involved in the attack and that it was a 'normal tourist visit.'
Pictured: Brian Sicknick with partner Sandra Garza, who wrote an op-ed for CNN Wednesday
Police initially said that Sicknick (pictured during the riots) had been injured while engaging with protesters, but the District of Columbia's chief medical examiner ruled in April that he died of natural causes
And just last week, 21 House Republicans voted against a measure to award Capitol Police a Congressional Gold Medal for their work in the riots. The bill ultimately passed, however, 406 - 21.
Garza blasted: 'As the months passed, my deep sadness turned to outright rage as I watched Republican members of Congress lie on TV and in remarks to reporters and constituents about what happened that day. Over and over they denied the monstrous acts committed by violent protesters.'
Garza's words came on the same day that an Indiana woman became the first defendant to be sentenced in the Capitol riots - but avoided jail time.
Anna Morgan Lloyd was ordered by a federal judge to serve three years of probation, perform 120 hours of community service and pay $500 in restitution. She pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor charge under a deal with prosecutors.
Garza, a clinical social worker, wrote about how she met Sicknick on a dating website in 2008
Garza, a clinical social worker, said Sicknick was 'a proud American and loved his country', and told how they met on a dating website in 2008.
They lived together for 11 years, she wrote, though they took a break in July while remaining 'incredibly close.'
Garza told how on the day of the pro-Trump protests on January 6, Sicknick had warned her he probably wouldn't be home until late.
She says she received a call from Sicknick's mother, worried about her son, but that Sicknick had assured them he was OK.
But she later received 'the worst phone call of my life' from a US Capitol Police Officer telling her that Sicknick was in the hospital after collapsing.
Garza says Sicknick warned her he probably wouldn't be home on the day of the pro-Trump protests on January 6
An ER physician then told her that Sicknick was on a ventilator and that she couldn't see him due to COVID-19 restrictions, Garza wrote. He died a day later.
Garza says she didn't watch the footage of the riot initially because she 'didn't think I could psychologically handle it.'
The District of Columbia's chief medical examiner ruled in April that Sicknick died of natural causes after suffering two strokes following the Capitol riots
Eventually, she did choose to watch it and was shocked to see 'officers being brutalized and beaten, and protesters defying orders to stay back from entering the Capitol.'
Garza said that she was compelled to speak up when a commission to investigate the Capitol riot was proposed.
'I knew it would not be comfortable or easy being in the public eye, but my desire for justice outweighed any discomfort I felt,' Garza wrote.
She met with many Republican senators, but 'only a handful of Republican senators showed that they possessed the moral compass to do the right thing by voting yes, putting America first, and showing warmth and compassion for the officers (as well as their families) who protect them daily.'
A bill to form the commission passed the House, but failed to pass in the Senate after Republicans blocked the bill, which fell six votes short of clearing the filibuster.
'By denying or downplaying the viciousness and trauma that occurred on January 6, members of Congress and the people who continue echoing their false narrative are engaging in a specific kind of psychological harm that is familiar to people who work in mental health,' Garza wrote, referring to it as 'secondary wounding.'
'Make no mistake: All of the officers and people who were physically harmed, terrified, psychologically destabilized or lost loved ones due to that day are literally being re-traumatized every time someone speaks untrue words to describe what happened on January 6,' she wrote.
'Brian was a proud American and loved his country. He continued his service long after his time in the military by becoming a US Capitol Police Officer, serving the American people and members of Congress -- and protecting democracy,' she continues.
Garza added that she and Sicknick were supporters of Donald Trump, but she now views him 'as the mastermind of that horrible attack.'
On the day of the riots, Sicknick returned to his division office that evening and collapsed at about 10pm. Police initially said that Sicknick had been injured while engaging with protesters
It was widely assumed at the time of his death that Sicknick had died from injuries sustained during the January 6 attack.
Investigators initially believed he had been struck by a fire extinguisher but that was later disproven.
But the strokes he suffered weren't related to any injuries he might have sustained during the riots, according to the examiner's determination.
Washington DC Chief Medical Examiner Francisco J. Diaz found no evidence that Sicknick suffered any adverse reactions to chemical irritants that he was sprayed with by some of the rioters.
His official cause of death was ruled as acute brainstem and cerebellar infarcts due to acute basilar artery thrombosis.
His manner of death was ruled 'natural,' which is used when a disease alone causes the death. The examiner's office clarified that the manner of death is not considered natural if it is hastened by an injury.
After his death, Sicknick was given full state honors and was brought to lie in state in the Capitol's historic Rotunda.
Garza's op-ed was published on the same day that the first rioter was scheduled to be sentenced. Pictured: Insurrectionists breach the Capitol in Washington on January 6
Anna Morgan Lloyd was on Wednesday the first of nearly 500 defendants to be sentenced for the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol.
Lloyd, 49, apologized to the court, 'the American people' and her family.
'I'm ashamed that it became a savage display of violence that day,' Lloyd said at her sentencing.
In seeking probation for Lloyd, prosecutors noted that she was not involved in any violence and destruction or preplanning and coordination of the Capitol breach.
Lloyd was invited by her hairdresser to drive to Washington to hear then-President Donald Trump speak, her attorney wrote in court documents.
U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth said he was giving her a 'break,' but didn't want others to think that probation - and not a stiffer sentence - would be the norm.
'Legally, I could give you the six months, but is that what really we want our judiciary to do?' the judge asked.
Also Wednesday, Graydon Young, a member of the Oath Keepers extremist group, pleaded guilty to charges in the insurrection and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in a major step forward for the massive investigation into the insurrection.
It was also the first guilty plea in the major conspiracy case brought against members of the Oath Keepers.
More than 480 people have been arrested and charged with taking part in the unrest, which saw rioters smash windows, battle police inside and outside the Capitol and sent lawmakers and then-Vice President Mike Pence into hiding.
The riot followed a fiery speech in which Trump repeated his false claims that his election defeat was the result of widespread fraud and disrupted the formal count by Congress of electoral votes in the race.
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