The outlet ran a story titled “Former Capitol Police officer a forensic match for Jan. 6 pipe bomber, sources say,” falsely claiming that Kerkhoff’s gait closely matched surveillance video of the pipe bombing suspect. The story, now retracted, led to an FBI investigation of the former officer, who defended the grounds on Jan. 6, and prompted her current employer, the CIA, to place her on administrative leave, Kerkhoff said.
Kerkhoff filed the lawsuit on Tuesday, with her lawyers saying Blaze’s “false and defamatory accusations have irreparably changed her life.” The 127-page filing lists Blaze Media, reporters Stephen Baker and Joseph Hanneman, and a new media company, Veritas Regnat LLC, as defendants.
“Defendants’ reporting was false,” the lawsuit reads. “Ms. Kerkhoff was not the January 6 pipe bomber. She was a normal, private person—with a family, career, and hobbies—who was at home with her boyfriend and their dog at the exact time
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