![]() ![]() Weber has enlisted two experts to argue to the police board that January 6 was the event that directly led to his suicide. Liebengood died by suicide after the US Capitol riot in January 2021. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office and the Metropolitan Police Department did not respond to CNN’s requests for comment.Ĭapitol Police Officer Howard Liebengood fingerprints a child during "Kid Safety Day," held in Washington DC, in April 2008. ![]() “While the bullet may have been the actual cause of death,” Weber told CNN, “the chain of events was set in motion January 6 and the chain was not broken.” It was supposed to be his first day back after seeking medical attention for the injuries and mental trauma he suffered on January 6. The legal brief filed with the police board states Officer Smith was assaulted by the violent mob and hit in the head with a metal pole January 6 he died nine days later after he shot himself in the head while driving to work from his home in Virginia to report for his scheduled shift. Weber says there is no known case in which suicide of a Metropolitan Police officer has been declared a line of duty death.īut Weber argues the circumstances of Officer Smith’s case require an exception to the rule. “He gave his life for DC and he should be given the same respect as anyone else that puts on the badge and goes to work every day,” Smith said. My husband, you know, was a police officer for DC for over 12 and a half years.” They’re not given the recognition they deserve. They’re not given the burial that they’re deserved. Eventually he took his own life.īut, she said, “because it’s not classified as ‘in line of duty,’ you don’t receive any of the benefits that a police officer’s family would receive if it was ‘in line of duty.’ The main thing is they’re not recognized. Smith told CNN’s Don Lemon on “Don Lemon Tonight” Monday that her husband became “a completely different person” after the Capitol attack. Washington, DC, law only permits a surviving spouse to receive a survivor annuity and continued benefits if an officer dies in the performance of their duty and the mayor determines the death was not caused “by his intention to bring about his own death.” The issue is now at the forefront since four officers – three Metropolitan police officers and one Capitol Police officer – have died by suicide since January 6. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. “They were being very cautious,” Weber said. A White House aide told Weber that Biden had requested a briefing on the issue but that there was no commitment on whether the President could ultimately help their case. ![]() Weber said he got a call less than 90 minutes after leaving their photo op inside the Oval Office. “But then he gestured to a legislative aide.” As Biden prepares to make his way back inside the White House, Weber grabs his attention and motions toward Erin to explain the legal battle they are waging. Video from last Thursday at the White House captures Weber behind the podium where the President had spoken earlier, as Vice President Kamala Harris chats with Erin Smith. Jennifer Wexton, a Virginia Democrat, in March calling for US Capitol Police to declare her husband’s death in the line of duty. His widow, Serena Liebengood, wrote an open letter to Rep. “I asked the President, did you know that they took away their wives’ health insurance and I’m fighting to have Jeffrey Smith’s ruled a line of duty death?”Ĭapitol Police Officer Howard Liebengood died by suicide on January 9. “I told him, it’s a good first step that you’re acknowledging Jeffrey Smith and Howard Liebengood’s sacrifice, but the gold medal is not enough,” Smith’s attorney David Weber told CNN. ![]() (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) Evan Vucci/APīiden signs bill to award Congressional Gold Medal to police who responded to insurrection 6 riots, in the Rose Garden of the White House, Thursday, Aug. President Joe Biden signs a bill that awards Congressional gold medals to law enforcement officers that protected members on Congress at the Capitol during the Jan. ![]()
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