The body of hero Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick will return to the building where he gave his life in honor next week.
The 42-year-old New Jersey resident was sprayed with pepper spray and fatally clubbed on Jan. 6 when rioters poured into the Capitol to try to derail the certification of President Biden’s election victory.
He died of his injuries a day later.
According to a statement by legislative leaders, Sicknick’s coffin will arrive at the eastern front of the Capitol on Tuesday at 9 p.m.
Members of Congress are invited to attend a two-hour viewing at the Capitol Rotunda the following morning.
Sicknick will then be buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
“The heroism of Officer Sicknick and the Capitol Police during the violent uprising against our Capitol helped save lives, defend the temple of our democracy and ensure Congress was not distracted from our duty to the Constitution,” says House Speaker Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Schumer said in a joint statement.
“His sacrifice reminds us every day of our obligation to our country and the people we serve.”
Republicans from South Carolina, Representative Ralph Norman and Senator Tim Scott, introduced the bill on Thursday that would allow Sicknick to lie in honor.
Only four pastors in the country’s history have been in honor of the Rotunda, including Rosa Parks, and two Capitol Police Officers who died on duty in 1998.
It differs from lying in state, which is reserved for presidents, lawmakers, and other dignitaries, in that members of the Capitol police escort and guard the body, unlike members of the military.
The FBI is investigating dozens of suspects in connection with Sicknick’s murder.