Talk about a whitewash. U.S. Capitol Police Lt. Michael Byrd was cleared in the killing of unarmed Ashli Babbitt without ever being interviewed on the shooting. This is outrageous. That means they didn’t even pretend to investigate her murder. They just decided to clear him without even really looking at the facts of the case. No detective worth his salt would ever exonerate someone without even questioning them to see if their story changed.
Byrd appeared with Lester Holt on the “NBC Nightly News” and he told him:
“There’s an investigative process [and] I was cleared by the DOJ [Department of Justice], and FBI and [the D.C.] Metropolitan Police.”
According to Paul Sperry of Real Clear Investigations Byrd had refused to talk to investigators about the shooting. In my opinion that was suspicious in itself. If you did things by the book wouldn’t you want to have your story told? And how do you clear someone without questioning them? I take the Fifth. Okay, you’re innocent. It just doesn’t smell right. They didn’t even threaten him with punishment if he refused to talk.
Babbitt family attorney Terry Roberts said in an RCI interview:
“He didn’t provide any statement to [criminal] investigators and they didn’t push him to make a statement. It’s astonishing how skimpy his investigative file is.”
Roberts’ statement is backed up by a January 2021 internal affairs report that noted that Byrd refused to give a statement to Internal Affairs and the FBI, who were jointly investigating the murder. I’m sure the Christopher Wray FBI was responsible for not forcing the issue. Wray is just one in a long line of corrupt FBI heads which included Rosenstein, Comey, and Mueller.
After Byrd declined to cooperate with D.C MPD Internal Affairs Division’s investigation, which was led by Det. John Hendrick, his case eventually was turned over to the USCP for a final administrative review of whether or not his actions conformed with department policies and training.
Still, USCP concluded in August that “the officer’s conduct was lawful and within department policy.” The agency launched its administrative investigation after the criminal investigation was closed.
In April, within four months of the shooting, Byrd was cleared of criminal wrongdoing by the Justice Department, which declined to impanel a grand jury to hear evidence in a departure from other lethal police-shooting cases involving unarmed citizens.
