The family of a police officer who died after responding to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol has warned that the Supreme Court’s decision this week on presidential immunity should “scare” Americans.
The Supreme Court on Monday issued a landmark decision granting broad legal protections to the president, ruling that he has “absolute” immunity for “core” constitutional acts and “implied” immunity for acts performed in his official capacity. The decision will have a major impact on Special Counsel Jack Smith’s election interference lawsuit against Trump, in which the former president faces multiple criminal charges over his actions in the run-up to January 6.
Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick died the day after the riot after suffering two strokes after being assaulted and exposed to a chemical irritant, and the Washington, D.C., medical examiner has said his death was linked to the attack.
His brother, Craig Sicknick, said in the letter Reviewed by CBS News The Supreme Court’s decision could have adverse effects on the entire country.
“The recent decision [Supreme Court] “These riots are horrifying and should frighten all Americans,” Sicknick wrote, adding that his family “have been through hell” because of the riots.
“American courts are supposed to adjudicate the punishment of people who break our laws, without regard to skin color, sex, wealth, political status, prestige, or any other difference they may have as individuals,” he wrote. “We have learned again that this notion is false, and that the very wealthy can literally get away with whatever they want.”
Democrats blasted the Supreme Court’s decision, saying it could allow the president to break the law with impunity. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in her dissent, warned that the decision could encourage corrupt officials to go unaccounted for and even use violence against political opponents.
Sicknick warned in the letter that the decision could mark a point of no return for the country.
“While it is possible that the damage inflicted on our country by Trump can be healed and we can move forward as a better, stronger nation, it is also very likely that this decision has doomed the ‘great American experiment,'” he wrote.
