The woman who was fatally shot by Capitol Police during Wednesday’s mob attack on the Capitol was an Air Force veteran who served for 12 years, according to service records provided to The Hill on Thursday.
Ashli Babbitt, 35, of San Diego, was jumping through a window into the Capitol with pro-Trump rioters when she was shot. She died later Wednesday and was one of four fatalities from the violent events that prompted evacuations and dozens of arrests.
Babbitt began active duty in the Air Force in 2004, eventually reaching the rank of senior airman in a military career that also included service in the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard, according to her service records.
She remained on active duty, serving as a security forces controller, until 2008, when she served in the Air Force Reserve until 2010. Babbitt then entered the Air National Guard. She was discharged in November 2016.
Babbitt’s ex-husband Timothy McEntee told The Washington Post that she served in Afghanistan and Iraq in active duty, along with deployments to Kuwait and Qatar with the Air National Guard.
The Air Force did not have Babbitt’s deployment data readily available on Thursday.
Videos and other posts on Babbitt’s Twitter account show her steadfast support for President Trump and indicate she was a follower of the QAnon conspiracy theory.
Her Twitter feed also includes photos of her attending pro-Trump rallies and self-recorded videos about immigration policy and support for a border wall.
She echoed many of Trump’s conspiracy theories and false claims of widespread voter fraud.
Babbitt was shot by an unidentified plain clothes police officer while part of a group forcing its way toward the House chamber where lawmakers had not yet been evacuated on Wednesday afternoon, according to U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) Chief Steven Sund.
“As protesters were forcing their way toward the House Chamber where Members of Congress were sheltering in place, a sworn USCP employee discharged their service weapon, striking an adult female,” Sund said in a statement.
He added that Babbitt “immediately” received medical assistance and was transported to the hospital after being shot.
The Capitol Police officer who shot Babbitt has been placed on administrative leave until the outcome of a joint Metropolitan Police Department and USCP investigation, per the USCP’s policy.
Three other individuals died the same day of “separate medical emergencies” near the Capitol grounds, police said.
Rioters stormed the Capitol shortly after a pro-Trump rally outside the White House, forcing lawmakers, reporters and others to flee for safety in secure areas for several hours before law enforcement was able to secure the building.
Lawmakers have since called for an investigation into why the Capitol Police failed to hold back the violent rioters.