The mother of Ashli Babbitt, Micki Witthoeft, was arrested Tuesday evening after striking a counter-protester at a right-wing event outside of the Washington, D.C. jail where many of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot defendants are being held.
Witthoeft, 58, was spotted by The Daily Beast being taken into custody just after 6:45 p.m. She was surrounded by officers and handcuffed before being walked into a waiting police van.
The arrest comes just one day after Witthoeft’s alleged violent outburst was caught on film and later reported to police. A senior law enforcement official confirmed the arrest was related to the earlier assault.
In the video, she can be seen racing after a counter-protester holding a megaphone and a camera. It’s unclear what precedes the incident, but the woman’s megaphone is blaring a loud siren sound, likely annoying the crowd of right-wing protesters gathered in support of the imprisoned Jan. 6 defendants.
As the anti-fascist protester raises a middle finger, Witthoeft raises her arm and strikes the woman before shoving her off the sidewalk. Witthoeft then continues following the woman as she runs away, grabbing her megaphone and smashing it before running off.
Following her arrest, a group of right-wing protesters gathered around the police vehicle to shout words of support, coalescing in chants of “Ashli Babbitt! Ashli Babbit!”
Witthoeft’s daughter, a former senior airman with the U.S. Air Force, was killed by a Capitol police officer on Jan. 6 as she attempted to enter the Speaker’s lobby just outside the U.S. House of Representatives.
Babbitt’s death has since become a right-wing cause célèbre.
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