After the attack on Capitol Hill on January 6th, many have stewed over the treatment of Capitol Police and the one woman, Alshi Babbitt, who was shot dead by police Now, after considerable protest from Republicans and other curious parties about the shooting, the officer who fired the shot that killed Babbitt has revealed himself, leading Democrat US Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL) to defend Lt. Mike Byrd.
Rep. Soto took to Twitter after the news broke that Lt. Byrd's identity had been disclosed, swiftly supporting him amid all the backlash, stating "We were trapped in the chamber and surrounded by violent insurrectionists. They would have been able to attack us, but for the heroism of him and other @CapitolPolice Officers."
Soto then added that he is "one of the lives saved by Lt. Mike Byrd."
Although the condemnation of the events on January 6th is nearly bipartisan, The Floridian Publisher Javier Manjarres, who was in attendance at the Capitol that day, can confirm the events reported by Soto.
According to Manjarres, he was trapped in the House Gallery with Reps. Val Demings (D-FL), Veronica Escobar, Pramila Jayapal, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), and at least 10 other Democratic members of the House of Representatives, and was later evacuated to Longworth Congressional office building once Capitol Police determined that it was safe to leave the gallery.
"Babbitt and other rioters broke the glass window that leads into the Speaker's Lobby and tried to enter as members of Congress were being evacuated. It was a clean shooting by Lt. Hyde. If she would have gotten in, she would have been no less than 7o feet away from retreating and unarmed members," said Manjarres. "The Capitol Police is tasked to protect all of the members of Congress. On that fateful day, all of the police officers on duty did their job."
