By: Gabrielle Oudkerk
On April 25, the White House hosted its annual correspondents’ dinner in Washington, DC, hosted by the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA). An event that typically brings together journalists, politicians, and celebrities was interrupted by an attempted shooting incident that cut the night short.
The place was filled with around 3,000 guests. Everyone under protection, including the United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance were reported safe; however, one Secret Service officer was hit in a protective vest, but he survived with minor injury from the shooter.
According to The Guardian, the night was upended by gunshots, prompting the “immediate evacuation of Donald and Melania Trump.” It was also reported that guests hid under the ballroom tables as Secret Service agents ran out of the room, mentioning “shots fired” during the evacuation.
Jeff Carroll, who was an intern of the chief of police of the Metropolitan Police Department, told The Guardian that the suspect “charged a US Secret Service checkpoint“ at the Washington Hilton, fully armed. The Mayor of Washington, D.C., Merle Bowser, described the suspect as currently being “evaluated.”
“We have no reason to believe at this time that anyone else is involved,” said Bowser.
Maryland Congressman Jamie Raskin recounted the events, saying, “We thought that some of the plates for the dinner fell, and the next thing you know, we all went under the table, screaming.”
CNN Anchor Wolf Blitzer was in attendance and stated that he was “a few feet away” from the shooter before the gunshots began.
“I had no idea, as I was hearing the gunshots, who this shooter was aiming at, or if he was just trying to scare everybody,” Blitzer said. “And, of course, the first thing that went through my mind was whether he was going to shoot me.”
An hour after the shooting occurred, WHCA President Weijia Jiang announced that the dinner “would be suspended” and rescheduled for a later date, according to Deadline.
“It all happened so fast, and when we were still on stage, we were in the middle of a very light moment with the entertainer who was doing a trick. And when I heard something in the audience, I thought it was a protester or something we’re very used to,” said Jiang. “But then I saw SWAT team members come to the head table and rush us to the ground and say, down, down, down.’ We were crawling off the stage.”
Jiang shared more of her experience at the dinner with Deadline.
“ I will say it was remarkable to see that in action and to understand it was their quick work that protected all of us that night, not just the president, not just the cabinet, everybody in that hotel.”
Cole Thomas Allen, age 31, was captured during the Correspondents’ Dinner shooting by Secret Service officers. Authorities state that he possibly traveled by train from his home in California to commit the crime.
He was taken down after he allegedly rushed through a security checkpoint and was found carrying multiple weapons near the entrance. He was then caught and arrested before reaching the entrance of the main ballroom, according to The Guardian.
Allen had no prior criminal record, but currently faces criminal charges, such as attempted assassination and a firearm-related offense, according to Reuters. Authorities currently believe that Allen acted alone.
Questions have been raised around the shooting of the Secret Service officer, after footage was released by the Justice Department. While the video shows that the officer fired a shot in response to Allen’s charge into the White House, it does not indicate that Allen fired a shot first, simply pointing the gun. Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, says that the officer was not hit by friendly fire.
“We now can establish that a pellet that came from the buckshot from the defendant’s Mossberg pump-action shotgun was intertwined with the fiber of the vest of the Secret Service officer,” said Pirro. “It is definitively his bullet.”
Juliette Kayyem, former Assistant Secretary for Policy at the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Faculty Director of the Homeland Security Project at the Harvard Kennedy School, analyzed the footage in a PBS interview.
“What you don’t see is, you at any moment like a sort of muzzle from his gun go off, so it’s a long way from saying lawmakers are going to debate this in court. It’s certainly not definitive,” said Kayyem.
However, analysis by Malachy Browne for The New York Times (NYT) suggests that Allen did fire the shot that struck the agent.
“The officer’s first shot is most likely drowned out by the sound of the louder shotgun blast, as they happened almost instantaneously — there was just a fraction of a second between them,” stated the NYT.
Members of the Trump administration believe that the intent was to assassinate President Trump.
In a recent press briefing on the Correspondent’s Dinner, White House Press Secretary Karoline Levitt claimed that the Correspondent’s Dinner was “hijacked by a depraved, crazy person who sought to assassinate the president and kill as many top Trump administration officials as possible.”
FBI Director Kash Patel made comments at a press conference on April 27, after charges were filed against Allen.
“Back at the Headquarters Division and the Washington Field Office, we were coordinating a national-scale investigation that literally spanned from coast to coast. As you heard, FBI agents, along with the interagency, were immediately dispatched to the suspect’s home in California, where we conducted interviews that provided critical information about this horrific attack.” Patel said.
Patel then insisted that due to the president’s backing of law enforcement, the tragedy led to no fatalities.
“It’s because of President Trump’s leadership and backing of the blue, every single person in law enforcement, that I stood with us into late evening hours on Saturday, early evening hours on Sunday, and all day yesterday and today, are thrilled to wear the badge and defend this country.”
Exiting the same hotel where former president Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981, Trump reflected on the role of the president, calling it “a dangerous profession”.
“When you’re impactful, they go after you. When you’re not impactful, [they] leave you alone,” said Trump.