Judge dismisses part of lawsuit against Trump from partner of Capitol Police officer who died after January 6
By Holmes Lybrand and Katelyn Polantz, CNN
(CNN) — A federal judge has dismissed part of a lawsuit brought against former President Donald Trump and two January 6, 2021, rioters by the partner of US Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who suffered two strokes and died one day after responding to the Capitol attack.
Amit Mehta, the federal judge presiding over the lawsuit in Washington, DC, found that because Sicknick’s partner, Sandra Garza, was not his spouse or domestic partner under DC law, she lacked “statutory standing” to bring a wrongful death claim.
But Mehta disposed of Trump’s claim of immunity in this case, noting that the DC Circuit Court of Appeals has already ruled he doesn’t have presidential immunity from lawsuits over his actions around January 6.
And other parts of the lawsuit are permitted to continue, including an allegation that Trump and the two men accused of attacking Sicknick during the Capitol attack, Julian Khater and George Tanios, engaged in a conspiracy to “violate civil rights.”
Tanios pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors related to the riot and was sentenced to time served and one year of supervised release. Khater, who pleaded guilty to two counts of assaulting, resisting or impeding officers with a dangerous weapon, was sentenced to 80 months behind bars.
According to Khater’s plea agreement, he took a can of bear spray from Tanios’ backpack during the attack and sprayed a line of police officers, which included Sicknick.
Mehta, in his ruling, found that he didn’t need to “decide whether Garza has plausibly alleged that Khater caused Officer Sicknick’s death” because “at a minimum, Officer Sicknick’s estate can recover for any pain and suffering that he experienced before his death, and the complaint sufficiently pleads that Khater’s actions caused such harm.”
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