The medical examiner's determination makes any potential murder charges unlikely. Because stress and traumatic events can lead to a stroke, some neurologists and other experts questioned the medical examiner's classification of the manner of death as natural; for example, Dr. Cyril Wecht, a forensic pathologist, said that Sicknick's manner of death should have been classified as accidental, a homicide, or "undetermined".
After the ruling, the Capitol Police issued a statement saying that the ruling "does not change the fact Officer Brian Sicknick died in the line of duty, courageously defending Congress and the Capitol."