A bystander who was struck by gunfire after a man opened fire on a checkpoint near the White House and was subsequently shot dead by U.S. Secret Service officers remains in serious condition, authorities confirmed on Sunday.
The Secret Service stated that the unidentified bystander sustained a gunshot wound that is not considered life-threatening. Officials have not clarified how the individual was shot.
Authorities have disclosed limited details regarding the incident, which occurred early Saturday evening. The District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department identified the suspect as 21-year-old Nasire Best from Dundalk, Maryland. Best reportedly began shooting toward a White House security checkpoint, prompting Secret Service officers to return fire. He was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
President Donald Trump was inside the White House at the time of the shooting. This marks the third shooting near the president within the past month. Earlier incidents included a man storming the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in April armed with guns and knives, and a separate event earlier this month where Secret Service officers shot and wounded a man who fired at them near the Washington Monument.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump suggested that the suspect had a "possible obsession with our Country’s most cherished structure." He also leveraged the shooting to advocate for a ballroom he aims to construct on the site of the former East Wing of the White House, stating that the incident "goes to show how important it is, for all future Presidents, to get, what will be, the most safe and secure space of its kind ever built in Washington, D.C." Trump is requesting $1 billion from Congress for security enhancements to the White House campus, including the proposed ballroom.
Court records from the District of Columbia reveal that Best had a previous encounter with law enforcement near the White House. He was arrested last July for attempting to enter White House grounds via a different checkpoint. He ignored officers' commands to stop, claimed to be Jesus Christ, and expressed a desire to be arrested.
Best was a track and field athlete at Dundalk High School, from which he graduated in 2023.
A woman identifying herself as Best's mother told The Washington Post that she learned about the shooting through social media and was in disbelief. She described her son as "never violent, regardless of what people are posting."
