Vance Was In Area Mins Before Secret Service Shot Man Near WH
The White House was put on lockdown after a shooting happened close to the Washington Monument. A person who looked suspicious was found on Monday evening, and after shooting at Secret Service agents, the suspect was neutralized
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According to Deputy Director Mathew C. Quinn, the incident happened just a few minutes after Vice President JD Vance had left the area.
At the time, the Secret Service said: “U.S. Secret Service personnel are on the scene of an officer-involved shooting at 15th Street and Independence Avenue in Washington, D.C.”
“The incident resulted from a confrontation between an armed individual and Secret Service Police,” another statement from the Secret Service said.
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A young person was hit in the incident and was taken to the hospital, and is not suffering life-threatening injuries.
The incident happened on the National Mall, which is about a mile from the White House. Even though it was far away, the White House was momentarily evacuated before the “all clear” was announced.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) in Washington, DC, announced in a statement that they are looking into the matter.
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“MPD is on scene of this investigation at 15th Street and Independence Ave, SW. The scene is secure.
“Avoid the area as roads will be closed for several hours. Additional updates to come as information is confirmed,” the department said.
The incident comes just over a week after an alleged gunman, Cole Tomas Allen, attempted to storm the White House Correspondents’ Dinner with Trump in attendance.
Allen made his initial appearance in federal court late last week, where he was formally advised of the charges filed by prosecutors. Cole Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, is accused of entering the Washington Hilton while armed with multiple weapons and attempting to reach the ballroom where President Trump was attending the dinner alongside Cabinet officials and journalists Saturday night.
“He attempted to assassinate the president of the United States, Donald J. Trump,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Ballantine told the court. “We are asking the court to preventatively detain Mr. Allen.”
“Cole Allen’s journey of accountability in the criminal justice system starts today,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a press conference Monday afternoon, adding, “There will be additional charges as this investigation continues to unfold.”
“But make no mistake, this was an attempted assassination of the President of the United States, with the defendant making clear what his intent was,” Pirro continued. “And that intent was to bring down as many of the high ranking Cabinet officials as he could. This is the kind of situation that we cannot tolerate.”
Allen booked a three-night stay at the Washington Hilton from Friday through Sunday, according to a newly unsealed probable cause affidavit.
The affidavit states that Allen traveled by train from the Los Angeles area to Chicago last Tuesday, arriving there on Thursday. He then boarded another train that reached Washington on Friday at approximately 1 p.m.
Roughly two hours later, around 3 p.m., he checked into a “specific hotel room” at the Hilton and remained there overnight, according to court documents reviewed by NBC News.
When he was arrested, the newly unsealed probable cause affidavit revealed that he was in possession of a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun and a Rock Island Armory 1911 .38-caliber pistol.
According to firearm transaction records reviewed by law enforcement, he purchased the shotgun from a dealer in California around August 17, 2025. He acquired the pistol from a dealer in a different city in California on October 6, 2023, NBC News noted.
Shortly before the alleged attack, authorities said Allen sent a written manifesto to members of his family describing an intent to target President Donald Trump and other Cabinet officials.
In his manifesto, Allen sharply criticized Trump, falsely accusing him of being a “rapist” and “pedophile,” while also announcing he wanted to target several members of the president’s administration.
He also apologized to his parents, friends, and students for his actions but indicated he felt he had some moral obligation to act.
Clarence Thomas Blasts Supreme Court For Refusing Florida Case
Florida argued the two states were undermining public safety by allowing individuals without legal immigration status — and, in some cases, insufficient English-language proficiency — to obtain commercial trucking licenses despite federal standards intended to govern interstate transportation safety.
The dispute gained national attention after a deadly 2025 crash on the Florida Turnpike involving an undocumented truck driver reportedly licensed through California or Washington.
According to the lawsuit, the driver allegedly made an illegal U-turn and was unable to properly interpret roadway signage, resulting in a collision that killed three people.
Joined by Justice Samuel Alito, Thomas argued the high court had a constitutional obligation to hear the interstate dispute because Florida had no other legal forum available to challenge another state’s policies.
The court’s majority denied Florida’s request without explanation.
The case underscores the growing national clash over immigration enforcement, state licensing authority, and whether states with looser immigration policies are creating broader public safety consequences for the rest of the country.
Thomas ripped the majority for refusing to hear the lawsuit since disputes between states can only be brought before the Supreme Court.
“If this Court does not exercise jurisdiction over a controversy between two States, then the complaining State has no judicial forum in which to seek relief,” Thomas wrote.
Thomas argued that Florida’s allegations against California and Washington raised serious public safety concerns, warning that failures to properly follow federal commercial driver licensing (CDL) laws can create dangerous conditions on American roadways.
Thomas pointed to the fatal Florida highway crash involving truck driver Harjinder Singh, who he said “could not read the road signs,” and argued Florida deserved a chance to pursue its claims.
Two blue states – California and Washington – issued Singh a CDL.
“An illegal alien who cannot read English road signs cannot drive an 80,000-pound tractor-trailer,” Thomas wrote.
“Federal law and regulations prohibit States from providing commercial driver’s licenses to applicants unless they pass a driver’s test, sufficiently understand the English language, and show appropriate immigration status,” he added.
Thomas argued that while the Supreme Court of the United States may have broad discretion when deciding whether to hear ordinary appeals, disputes between states occupy a different category because the Constitution grants the high court exclusive jurisdiction over those cases.
“We have no more right to decline the exercise of jurisdiction which is given, than to usurp that which is not given,” Thomas wrote.
He also accused the court of failing to follow the Constitution by refusing to hear disputes between states.
“This Court has adopted a discretionary approach to its exclusive original jurisdiction based on policy judgments that are in conflict with the policy choices that Congress made in the statutory text,” Thomas wrote.
Thomas argued that if Florida, California, and Washington were separate sovereign nations rather than American states, a dispute involving one government allegedly allowing unsafe drivers into another jurisdiction could trigger major diplomatic conflict.
Thomas suggested that in an international context, such disputes would likely be addressed through international courts, treaties, or direct government action.
“By entering the Union, States agree to instead have such disputes resolved by this Court,” he wrote.
The issuance of commercial driver’s licenses to non-citizens came under increased scrutiny from the Department of Transportation last summer following a series of deadly crashes involving undocumented immigrant truck drivers.
Last September, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced stricter federal requirements for non-citizens seeking commercial driver’s licenses, part of a broader push by the Trump administration to tighten transportation and immigration enforcement standards, Fox News reported.
Duffy also warned that California could risk losing federal transportation funding if the state continued allowing commercial licenses to remain active for individuals deemed ineligible under revised federal guidelines.
