A man carrying a concealed firearm was shot by United States Secret Service agents on Monday afternoon near the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., after he opened fire on officers who had been following him on suspicion of carrying a weapon. A juvenile bystander was also struck during the incident but did not sustain life-threatening injuries.
According to Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn, plainclothes agents first spotted the man around 3:30 p.m. near the White House complex, noticing the outline of a weapon beneath his clothing. The agents followed him briefly before calling in uniformed officers. When the suspect saw the uniformed agents approach, he fled on foot, drew his firearm, and shot at the officers. They returned fire and struck him. The man was transported to a hospital, though Quinn said he had no immediate information on his condition. Investigators believe the juvenile bystander was hit by shots fired by the suspect rather than by law enforcement, though Quinn noted that medical and forensic authorities would make that determination. The Washington, D.C., metropolitan police will lead the investigation into the officer-involved shooting.
The shooting occurred shortly after a motorcade carrying Vice President JD Vance passed through the area, near 15th Street and Independence Avenue — roughly a mile from the White House. The White House was briefly placed on lockdown as emergency crews responded, and Secret Service agents ushered journalists from the grounds into the press briefing room. President Donald Trump, who was hosting a small business event inside, continued without interruption.
The incident marks the second time in as than two weeks that Secret Service agents have discharged a firearm in Washington. Just over a week earlier, a gunman attempted to force his way into the White House Correspondents' Association dinner armed with guns and knives; a Secret Service officer was shot in that incident but survived due to body armour. Cole Tomas Allen has been charged in connection with that attack. Quinn declined to say whether Monday's shooting was linked to either that incident or to any broader threat against the president. "Whether or not it was directed to the president or not, I don't know, but we will find out," he said.
The back-to-back incidents highlight the persistent security pressures facing the Secret Service in the vicinity of the White House. The area around the Washington Monument — a landmark on the National Mall, the open parkland at the centre of the U.S. capital — is one of the most heavily policed stretches in the country, yet both episodes unfolded in its immediate surroundings, raising renewed questions about threat assessment and response protocols.