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Live Updates: Trump safe after shots fired at White House Correspondents' Dinner; suspect in custody
What to know about the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner
- President Trump was safely evacuated from the White House Correspondents' Dinner Saturday night following a shooting outside the ballroom of the Washington Hilton Hotel. Mr. Trump and first lady Melania Trump were whisked off the stage by Secret Service agents as the sound of gunfire sent dinner attendees ducking under tables.
- The suspect is in custody. He has been identified as 31-year-old Cole Allen of Torrance California, multiple sources told CBS News. He was armed with a shotgun, a handgun and knives, and is believed to have acted alone, police said.
- A Secret Service agent was struck by a round but was wearing a bulletproof vest and is expected to be OK, law enforcement sources said.
- The president returned to the White House and held a news conference, praising officers for their response and telling Americans,
"We have to resolve our differences."
WHCA president Weijia Jiang, who sat next to Trump, describes shooting: "Nobody should have to feel that way"
CBS News senior White House correspondent Weijia Jiang, who is also the president of the White House Correspondents Association, was sitting next to President Trump as the incident unfolded.
"What was going through my mind is my 7-year-old daughter was there. My husband was there. My parents were there," Jiang said. "On a night where we all came together to celebrate the freedoms and the First Amendment, we also have to think about how fragile they are in this country because … shootings and would-be shootings happen every day."
"And it doesn't matter if it's the White House Correspondents' Dinner or anywhere else in this country. Nobody should have to feel that way. Nobody should have to feel scared to be anywhere in a public place," she added.
Jiang said the annual press dinner is about acknowledging how vital the First Amendment is to democracy, and a chance for the press and the president "to get together in a different context and recognize the important relationship, despite how complicated it might be."
"That's what we were doing, and unfortunately … this traumatic event unfolded and thank goodness everybody is safe. And that's the most important thing out of all of this," she said.
D.C. interim police chief says alleged shooter was guest at the hotel
Secret Service Director Sean Curran told reporters that agents "performed admirably" in apprehending the suspected gunman when he charged the security checkpoint. President Trump called the agent who was struck, Curran said.
Jeffrey Carroll, interim chief of police for the Metropolitan Police Department, said they don't yet know the alleged gunman's motivation or who his specific target may have been. The suspect was not known to the D.C. police department, he said.
Carroll said the suspect charged the security checkpoint with a shotgun in his hand, and was also armed with a handgun and multiple knives.
The suspected shooter was not hit by gunfire and was taken to the hospital for evaluation, Carroll said.
The interim police chief said "preliminary information" is that the gunman was a guest at the hotel. Law enforcement secured a room at the hotel and is going through the "appropriate procedures" to determine what was inside.
Carroll said law enforcement believes the alleged gunman is the only suspect in the case.
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