2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting
| 2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting | |
|---|---|
| Part of Security incidents involving Donald Trump | |
 Law enforcement respond to an armed suspect | |
| Location | Washington Hilton Washington, D.C., US |
| Coordinates | 38°54′59″N 77°02′43″W / 38.91639°N 77.04528°W |
| Date | April 25, 2026 8:36 p.m. (EDT; UTC−04:00) |
Attack type |
|
| Weapons |
|
| Deaths | 0 |
Injured | 2 (including the suspect)[a] |
| Motive | Assassinate Trump administration officials (other motives under investigation) |
| Accused | Cole Tomas Allen |
| Charges | 3 counts[b] |
On the night of April 25, 2026, gunshots were fired near the main security area for the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C. President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and members of the Cabinet were forced to leave the event by the Secret Service. It was the first White House Correspondents' Dinner that Trump went to as president.[3]
Police officers identified the suspect as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen, who planned to target many Trump administration officials. Allen was arrested near the security area outside the banquet hall after running past the security checkpoint while holding weapons. Investigators believe he was staying at the hotel as a guest. One officer was shot, but was kept safe because of his bulletproof vest.[4] The suspect was taken to the hospital for a single knee injury.[5]
A manifesto by Allen criticized Trump administration policies and he called himself as the "Friendly Federal Assassin". On April 27, Allen was charged with three criminal counts, including attempting to assassinate a United States president.[1][6][7]
The shooting was the third assassination attempt against Trump since 2024, following the July 2024 attempt near Butler, Pennsylvania, and the September 2024 attempt at Trump's golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida.[8][9][10]
The Washington Hilton was the site of the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan in 1981.[11]
Notes
References
- 1 2 "Suspect in White House correspondents' dinner shooting faces three charges in first court appearance". NBC News. April 27, 2026. Archived from the original on April 27, 2026. Retrieved April 27, 2026.
- ↑ Rosenm, Jacob; Linton, Caroline (April 27, 2026). "Suspect in White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting charged with assassination attempt". CBS News. Archived from the original on April 27, 2026. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
- ↑ Erickson, Bo; Hunnicutt, Trevor (April 26, 2026). "Suspect in White House press dinner shooting wrote anti-Christian manifesto, Trump says". Reuters. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ↑ Tucker, Eric; Durkin Richer, Alanna; Balsamo, Michael (April 26, 2026). "DC gala shooting suspect aired grievances against Trump in writings to family". Associated Press. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ↑ Yee, Curtis, ed. (April 25, 2026). "Live updates: Trump unharmed after shooting incident outside the White House correspondents' dinner". Associated Press. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
- ↑ "Suspect in White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting charged with assassination attempt". NBC News. Archived from the original on April 27, 2026. Retrieved April 27, 2026.
- ↑ Bagchi, Aysha, ed. (April 29, 2026). "DOJ says Cole Tomas Allen must stay jailed: 'Calculated to cause death'". USA Today. Retrieved April 29, 2026.
- ↑ Heer, Jeet (April 27, 2026). "Trump Can't Stop Lying About the Attempts on His Life". The Nation. Archived from the original on April 27, 2026. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
- ↑ Leary, Alex; Dawsey, Josh; McGraw, Meridith; LeVine, Marianne (April 27, 2026). "Pushing Past Third Assassination Attempt, Trump Forges Ahead With His Ballroom". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
- ↑ Hawley, Josh (April 27, 2026). "Hawley Calls for Congressional Hearing Following Third Assassination Attempt on President Trum p". Josh Hawley: U.S. Senator for Missouri. Archived from the original on April 28, 2026. Retrieved April 27, 2026.
- ↑ Wingrove, Josh; Miller, Myles; Lowenkron, Hadriana (April 27, 2026). "Another attack at 'Hinckley Hilton' raises new security concerns". Fortune. Archived from the original on April 27, 2026. Retrieved April 27, 2026.