A shooting near the Washington monument on Monday left one person hospitalized after law enforcement officers opened fire, the Secret Service confirmed. The incident unfolded as Vice President JD Vance's motorcade moved through the downtown area.
Plainclothes agents spotted a man they considered suspicious and believed he was armed. When uniformed Secret Service agents arrived on scene, the man fled on foot, pulled a gun, and fired at officers, according to Matthew Quinn, the Secret Service's deputy director. Agents returned fire and struck him.
"They returned fire and engaged," Quinn said. "That individual was hit, [and] he's since been transported to the hospital."
Quinn declined to say whether the man's injuries were life-threatening or to discuss specific details about what prompted the initial suspicion. The shooting occurred around 15th Street and Independence Avenue, blocks from the White House.
A teenage bystander was also struck during the exchange but suffered no life-threatening wounds and received hospital treatment. Quinn said it remained unclear whether Vance had been a target of the shooting.
The White House briefly secured its grounds as investigators worked the scene. Secret Service staff brought reporters who had been stationed outside into the briefing room. President Trump, who was inside the building for a small business event at the time, continued without interruption.
Authorities cleared the area as emergency crews responded, and the Secret Service urged people to avoid the neighborhood.
Author James Rodriguez: "A shooting blocks from the White House raises hard questions about what officials spotted and why it escalated so quickly, but Quinn's silence on those details leaves the public guessing."
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