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Aug. 23 (UPI) -- An internal investigation by U.S. Capitol Police has found that the officer who shot and killed pro-Donald Trump rioter Ashli Babbitt during the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol acted lawfully and ethically, the department said Monday. After reviewing evidence and talking to witnesses, the department's Office of Professional Responsibility found that the unidentified officer should not face internal discipline.
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The panel determined that the officer's actions met the department's criteria of only using deadly force "when the officer reasonably believes that action is in the defense of human life, including the officer's own life, or in the defense of any person in immediate danger of serious physical injury."
"The actions of the officer in this case potentially saved members and staff from serious injury and possible death from a large crowd of rioters who forced their way into the U.S. Capitol and to the House chamber where members and staff were steps away," the department said in a statement.
"Officers had barricaded the Speaker's Lobby with furniture before a rioter shattered the glass door. If the doors were breached, the rioters would have immediate access to the House chambers. The officer's actions were consistent with the officer's training and USCP policies and procedures."
Babbitt, a 35-year-old Air Force veteran from Ocean Beach, Calif., died after she was shot while participating in the mob of the Capitol. Thousands of rioters loyal to Trump pushed past police barriers around the building and broke windows to enter. Multiple people, including a Capitol Police officer, died as a result of the attack.
Video footage appears to show Babbitt among a group of people attempting to climb through a broken glass door when the officer opened fire, hitting her in the left shoulder. She died later at a Washington, D.C., hospital.
The Justice Department announced in April it would not criminally charge the officer who shot Babbitt.
