Biden's DOJ seeks to transfer wrongful death suit for Ashli Babbit to Washington DC from California

The Department of Justice has filed to change the venue of Ashley Babbitt's wrongful death lawsuit from California to Washington D.C. A hearing on the request is scheduled for April 8 in San Diego. US District Judge Cynthia Bashant, an Obama-appointing, is overseeing the case. Babbitt was shot to death by Capitol Police on January 6, 2021 as she was attempting to enter the Capitol Building. She was unarmed.

Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California on behalf of Babbitt's family, seeking justice for the tragic death of the veteran, who was shot and killed by Capitol Police Leiuetentat Michael Byrd on January 6 in the U.S. Capitol.

Outlined in Judicial Watch's complaint, the shooting took place at the east entrance to the Speaker's Lobby, where Babbitt was unarmed and had her hands raised when she was fatally shot by Lt. Byrd. The complaint highlights Byrd's admission that he shot Babbitt without assessing her intentions or identifying her as female.

In March, Judicial Watch filed an opposition to the Justice Department's request to transfer the venue of the case to the District of Columbia. The organization pointed out that under federal law, a “civil action against the United States may be brought in any judicial district in which the plaintiff resides,” and “a civil action on a tort claim against the United States may be prosecuted in the judicial district where the plaintiff resides.”

Judicial Watch contends that Washington D.C. is a "hostile forum for January 6 defendants" and is already prejudicially biased against Ashli Babbitt. They argue that moving the case to D.C. could potentially undermine the pursuit of justice for Babbitt's family, leading to an unfair legal outcome.