Suspect charged with attempting to assassinate Trump at press dinner | White House correspondents’ dinner shooting
The suspected gunman who tried to attack a White House reporters’ dinner was arraigned in federal court on Monday and charged with three federal crimes, including attempting to assassinate the president.
The alleged gunman, identified by law enforcement as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, Southern California, was charged with attempting to assassinate the president of the United States, carrying a firearm in commission of a felony and unlawful use of a firearm during violence.
The first charge carries a potential penalty of up to life in prison.
Court documents setting out the charges were not immediately available. Allen was represented by attorneys with the federal defender’s office and sat next to them in court wearing a blue prison jumpsuit. Three US marshals were immediately behind Allen as he appeared.
Allen has no criminal record or civil court history in Los Angeles County, according to a records search.
Among the weapons found on his person Saturday night were a 12-gauge shotgun, a handgun and three knives, according to federal prosecutor Jocelyn Ballantine.
Judge Matthew Sharbaugh asked Allen if he had taken any drugs in the past day, to which Allen answered no.
Jeanine Pirro, with an unusual appearance, was also sitting in the front row of the courtroom.
Allen is due back for detention on April 30 and a preliminary hearing on May 11.
On Sunday, Blanche said the alleged gunman, who charged toward the ballroom where the black-tie event was held on Saturday night but was stopped, was believed to have targeted senior Trump administration officials who were at the dinner, “possibly including the president.”
Blanche also added that he was “not actively cooperating” with authorities.
Investigators have not yet determined a motive. The suspect was armed with a shotgun, a pistol and several knives when he was arrested and is thought to have acted alone. Police are searching for an address linked to Allen in Torrance, and writings reportedly found in his hotel room are also being examined as part of the investigation.
The suspect is thought to have traveled by train from California to Chicago to Washington, where he checked in as a guest at the Washington Hilton hotel, where the glitzy journalists’ gala is held every year.
Trump and his officials were rushed to safety after the alleged gunman passed through a security checkpoint outside the hotel ballroom and fired shots before being subdued by law enforcement. A federal agent was shot but was wearing a bulletproof vest and was released from the hospital Sunday.
Trump agreed to attend this year’s dinner for the first time as a sitting president, after boycotting it in previous years. Thousands of media members were in attendance, as well as many senior members of his cabinet, including Vice President J.D. Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
As Trump returned to the White House for an extraordinary news conference shortly after the incident on Saturday night, with the president and several members of the press still in ballroom attire, he described the attacker as a “lone wolf act.”
After leaving the hotel where former president Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981, Trump told reporters that being president was a “dangerous job.” “When you’re effective, they come after you. When you’re not impressive, they leave you alone,” he said.
“It’s always shocking when something like this happens,” Trump continued. “I can’t worry so much about not being able to function.”
Although police are still trying to determine a motive, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed Sunday morning that the event was “hijacked by a depraved, deranged individual who is trying to assassinate the president and kill as many senior Trump administration officials as possible.”
Associated Press contributed reporting
