A man was shot by the Secret Service near the White House on Monday after he allegedly opened fire at agents. The incident happened at around 3:30 p.m. ET, just moments after a motorcade carrying Vice President JD Vance had passed through the same area.
According to Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn, plainclothes officers spotted the suspect and alerted uniformed officers to detain him. The man allegedly ran away, pulled out a firearm, and fired in the direction of Secret Service agents, who then returned fire.
NBC News says the suspect was taken to a hospital, though his condition is currently unknown. In addition, a bystander identified as a minor was also hit by gunfire and taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Quinn said the bystander may have been struck by the suspect’s gunfire, but declined to confirm, saying doctors would “figure that out.”
The Secret Service is keeping details tight as the investigation gets underway
The shooting took place at 15th Street and Independence Avenue, near the Washington Monument. Quinn confirmed that the investigation will be handled by the Washington Metropolitan Police Department, and police tape was still surrounding the area after the incident.
When asked if the incident was connected to other threats against President Trump, Quinn said, “We’re patrolling this area and every site we do, 24/7, hard-core.” He added that whether the incident was directed at the president remains unclear, but they intend to find out. This comes after Trump was rushed out of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner following gunshots, adding to a growing pattern of security scares around the president.
Quinn also confirmed that the gunman did not attack Vance’s motorcade and that there was no sign he was trying to approach it. When asked how agents identified the suspect as a threat, Quinn said only that plainclothes officers observed a “visual print” of a firearm, and he declined to provide more details about the recovered weapon.
The White House’s North Lawn was evacuated during the incident, with Secret Service officers running onto the lawn carrying long guns and telling members of the media to leave the area. The media was allowed back outside in less than 10 minutes. The shooting also drew widespread attention online, with many claiming the WHCA shooting was staged – a claim that quickly spread across social media before being addressed on live television.
This incident comes just a week after a California man was charged with attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump, raising further concerns about security around the White House and its occupants.
Published: May 4, 2026 09:46 pm