TRENTON, NJ -New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy issued an order for flags at state buildings to be flown at half-mast on Monday to honor U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, a New Jersey native who was killed during Wednesday’s violent protest at the U.S. Capitol building. Murphy injected som party politics into his statement on the officer’s death.
“Officer Sicknick gave his life protecting the United States Capitol, and by extension, our very democracy, from violent insurrection. His needless murder at the hands of a mob bent on overthrowing the Constitution he had dedicated his life to upholding is shocking. It is my fervent hope that the rioters whose actions directly contributed to his death are quickly identified and brought to justice,” Murphy said.
Governor Phil Murphy ordered that the U.S. and New Jersey flags be flown at half-staff at all state buildings and facilities on Monday, January 11, 2021, in honor of United States Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, a former resident of South River, who died following injuries sustained while defending the Capitol during the violent insurrection on January 6th.
“United States Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick embodied the selfless spirit of his native state. Officer Sicknick was a product of South River and a graduate of the Middlesex County Vocational and Technical Schools,” Murphy added. “”Before joining the Capitol Police, he was Staff Sergeant Sicknick with the New Jersey Air National Guard. He was a Fire Team Member and Leader with the 108th Security Force Squadron, 108th Wing, at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, and his six years of service included overseas deployments in support of Operation Southern Watch and Operation Enduring Freedom.”
On May 29th, Dave Patrick Underwood, 53, a federal law enforcement officer with the FBI died after he was shot and killed protecting the U.S. Courthouse in Oakland, California. That death occurred during a peaceful protest honoring George Floyd. Murphy made no such accommodation for Underwood, nor did he condemn the murder of Underwood at the hands of BLM. In that protest, 70 businesses were destroyed or damaged.
The protest that day in Oakland started peacefully but descended into violence and chaos that night. Later that night a Cincinnati police officer was struck in the head by a bullet during a confrontation with BLM protesters.
“Tammy and I send our deepest condolences to Officer Sicknick’s family and friends, as well as to his United States Capitol Police colleagues and the Guardsmen and Guardswomen he served alongside. We thank him for his service to our nation,” Murphy said.