DC-Shooting at White House Correspondents Dinner, April 25, 2026

[indicolite22]

WASHINGTON — Cole Tomas Allen found time to snap a chilling selfie in his room at the Washington Hilton about 30 minutes before he tried to assassinate President Trump and members of his cabinet during Saturday night’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. Allen, 31, pictured himself at 8:03 p.m., smirking before heading downstairs and attempting to barge through a security checkpoint while carrying two firearms and multiple knives.

WHCD suspect Cole Allen took smirking selfie while armed to the teeth before attack on ballroom: docs

Luigi Mangione wannabe.

 

[PrairieWind]

The only way I can imagine Allen hitting the officer with a bullet would be if he switched guns, ie started out with buckshot or a slug fired from the shotgun but switched to a pistol to fire bullets. Imo

Seems that Allen did shoot the Agent.

Witnesses tell investigators Secret Service agent shot by suspect

The disclosure comes amid questions about whether a colleague wounded the agent or suspect Cole Tomas Allen at the White House Correspondents’ dinner.

www.usatoday.com

 

[Sundog]

Luigi Mangione wannabe.

And Tyler Robinson wannabe.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

The security was pretty standard, not lax.

I saw Trump speak at the DC Hilton in 2024. The venue is use to high security events. At that one it was a room with one entrance; the detector was well away from the door . You would do through a metal detector, just like an airport. If you set it off they would wand you. There was security outside the room and inside the room.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

I'm surprised that someone with mental health problems was approved to be a part-time teacher.

There must be many teachers out there who have had diagnoses of all kinds. I don't think this guy had shown prior signs he was capable of something like this.

 

[Bodhi]

It is not established that Allen fired a weapon, as I read several times here. According to some MSM, it seems a witness stated Allen fired. As we know, however, witness testimony in a crisis situation is often unreliable. Investigators have not recovered a bullet that links Allen or his firearms to the shots fired. I felt it was premature to say without definitive proof that Allen fired but uncomfortable weighing in.

But now the Washington Post is reporting it's reviewed security footage that is much better resolution than what we've all seen circulating since Saturday evening. The new higher-resolution footage pinpoints muzzle flashes when the agents fired shots, but no muzzle flashes from Allen.

I feel confident in posting now that we can't conclude Allen fired until investigators establish he did with evidence. The screenshot in the report shows Allen is clearly holding a firearm at that point, whereas in previous video and screenshots on MSM his hands appeared to be empty. There evidence is he was armed. There is no evidence establishing he fired a weapon or used a knife.

Surveillance footage reviewed by The Washington Post shows that Cole Tomas Allen appeared to raise his shotgun in the direction of a Secret Service officer who then fired the only shots that are clearly visible in the video from a security checkpoint outside Saturday’s White House correspondents’ dinner.

The video, a much higher resolution version of the security camera footage President Donald Trump posted to social media that night, does not capture every gunshot that authorities say was fired. But it provides the clearest picture yet of the four seconds between when Allen burst out of a doorway in full sprint and when he exited the frame, falling to the ground at the top of a staircase. . . .

The footage shows the officer drew his weapon within two seconds of Allen’s arrival. The officer is seen firing four times at Allen — and three of those shots appeared to be in the general direction of other security personnel as Allen ran past them.

There is no indication in the footage reviewed by The Post that Allen fired his weapon, though authorities have charged him with discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. The footage shows no obvious flash from the muzzle of the shotgun before the suspect runs out of the frame.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2026/04/29/white-house-correspondents-dinner-video-new/

 

[Bodhi]

I'm surprised that someone with mental health problems was approved to be a part-time teacher.

Allen isn't a schoolteacher, though. He was a part-time tutor for a private test-prep company. Very different standards.

Part-Time Tutor, Game Developer Charged With Attempted Assassination of Trump

Cole Tomas Allen apologized to friends and former students, according to a criminal complaint.

www.edweek.org

 

[moonglow123]

It is not established that Allen fired a weapon, as I read several times here. According to some MSM, it seems a witness stated Allen fired. As we know, however, witness testimony in a crisis situation is often unreliable. Investigators have not recovered a bullet that links Allen or his firearms to the shots fired. I felt it was premature to say without definitive proof that Allen fired but uncomfortable weighing in.

But now the Washington Post is reporting it's reviewed security footage that is much better resolution than what we've all seen circulating since Saturday evening. The new higher-resolution footage pinpoints muzzle flashes when the agents fired shots, but no muzzle flashes from Allen.

I feel confident in posting now that we can't conclude Allen fired until investigators establish he did with evidence. The screenshot in the report shows Allen is clearly holding a firearm at that point, whereas in previous video and screenshots on MSM his hands appeared to be empty. There evidence is he was armed. There is no evidence establishing he fired a weapon or used a knife.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2026/04/29/white-house-correspondents-dinner-video-new/

Wow. Well, I suppose according to his manifesto that does make sense. He claimed he only wanted to hurt Trump or possibly the other main political figures, and didn’t want to shoot LE or anyone unrelated. He didn’t get close enough to any political figures to try.

Still shocked the building wasn’t better guarded and he could rush into it at all.

 

[SouthAussie]

I wonder what happened with the report we heard early on where he had used an adjacent room to assemble his weapon, seen by an employee. Sounds like maybe he did what that utah guy seemed to do, maybe stick it down his pants? Coming down so many floors in the stairwell, he'd have to have hidden it somehow.

It sounds as if he hid the weapon under a long coat. This is from the govt memorandum in support of pretrial detentions.


"Shortly after 8:30 p.m., the defendant approached a USSS security screening checkpoint located on the Terrace Level of the hotel," the document stated. "Before the defendant approached the checkpoint, he discarded a long black coat that concealed a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun. The defendant then sprinted through one of the magnetometers at the checkpoint and ran in the direction of the stairs leading to the ballroom where the President and members of his family and Cabinet were located."

"As the defendant did so, he held a shotgun in both hands in a raised position parallel to the ground. A USSS officer observed the defendant fire the shotgun in the direction of the stairs leading down to the ballroom," the filing continued. "The USSS officer drew his service weapon and fired five times at the defendant. The defendant fell to the ground, was restrained by law enforcement, and was placed under arrest."

MSN

 

[SouthAussie]

It was Erin Thielman (who was at the dinner) who went to close the wide-open ballroom doors.


An attendee of the White House Correspondents' Dinner who was outside the ballroom when a gunman ran through a security checkpoint Saturday night said the suspect "fell right at my feet" before he was arrested.
"I would not have had to take a step forward to touch him," Air Force veteran Erin Thielman said. "I could've just bent down to touch him."

Thielman said she stepped out of the ballroom at the Washington Hilton to call her son as the suspect, Cole Allen, rushed toward the event.

Thielman sprang into action. She said she ran down the stairs and seeing that the doors to the ballroom were "wide open," she began closing them.

"I was very concerned because we had the line of succession to our country in the ballroom, and I didn't know what they knew," she said.

Witness says suspect in correspondents' dinner shooting "fell right at my feet" while running toward ballroom

A witness says the doors to the ballroom where the White House Correspondents' Dinner was held were "wide open" when a gunman rushed toward the event.

www.cbsnews.com

 

[PrairieWind]

It is not established that Allen fired a weapon, as I read several times here. According to some MSM, it seems a witness stated Allen fired. As we know, however, witness testimony in a crisis situation is often unreliable. Investigators have not recovered a bullet that links Allen or his firearms to the shots fired. I felt it was premature to say without definitive proof that Allen fired but uncomfortable weighing in.

But now the Washington Post is reporting it's reviewed security footage that is much better resolution than what we've all seen circulating since Saturday evening. The new higher-resolution footage pinpoints muzzle flashes when the agents fired shots, but no muzzle flashes from Allen.

I feel confident in posting now that we can't conclude Allen fired until investigators establish he did with evidence. The screenshot in the report shows Allen is clearly holding a firearm at that point, whereas in previous video and screenshots on MSM his hands appeared to be empty. There evidence is he was armed. There is no evidence establishing he fired a weapon or used a knife.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2026/04/29/white-house-correspondents-dinner-video-new/

Witnesses tell investigators Secret Service agent shot by suspect

The disclosure comes amid questions about whether a colleague wounded the agent or suspect Cole Tomas Allen at the White House Correspondents’ dinner.

www.usatoday.com

Witnesses stated he fired and the shot hit the agent. The one agent was the only one other than Allen that fired a weapon. Allen's shot gun contained a discharged cartridge.

 

[NuttMegg]

It was Erin Thielman (who was at the dinner) who went to close the wide-open ballroom doors.


An attendee of the White House Correspondents' Dinner who was outside the ballroom when a gunman ran through a security checkpoint Saturday night said the suspect "fell right at my feet" before he was arrested.
"I would not have had to take a step forward to touch him," Air Force veteran Erin Thielman said. "I could've just bent down to touch him."

Thielman said she stepped out of the ballroom at the Washington Hilton to call her son as the suspect, Cole Allen, rushed toward the event.

Thielman sprang into action. She said she ran down the stairs and seeing that the doors to the ballroom were "wide open," she began closing them.

"I was very concerned because we had the line of succession to our country in the ballroom, and I didn't know what they knew," she said.

Witness says suspect in correspondents' dinner shooting "fell right at my feet" while running toward ballroom

A witness says the doors to the ballroom where the White House Correspondents' Dinner was held were "wide open" when a gunman rushed toward the event.

www.cbsnews.com

Apparently they can't explain how Allen shot behind him to hit the officer, going 9 mph with both hands supporting the shotgun, iirc. If they knew that gunshot was responsible we'd know it but they have said bullet, or round. And he fell down, or purposely stopped his charge of his own volition. I can see that coming up in his defense, if true. Mitigating factor.

3 days after correspondents’ dinner, FBI still unsure who shot officer outside ballroom

 

[NuttMegg]

Even if there was 1 discharged shell, they haven't said it was discharged that night. There would be significant GSR on hands and shirt, but they haven't confirmed that. Imo it is not difficult for investigators or hunters to distinguish between buckshot and a bullet hitting a cell phone or vest.

 

[NuttMegg]

If he had discharged the gunshot, it would be obvious in many places. Given the quantity of shot. I wouldn't be surprised that if he did shoot that night, that it was above any heads. They would know by now if gunshot hit the officer, if the shotgun was fired that night.

 

[PrairieWind]

If he had discharged the gunshot, it would be obvious in many places. Given the quantity of shot. I wouldn't be surprised that if he did shoot that night, that it was above any heads. They would know by now if gunshot hit the officer, if the shotgun was fired that night.

Clearly something hit the officer, and no other agents are seen firing their weapons, soooo.

 

[NuttMegg]

Clearly something hit the officer, and no other agents are seen firing their weapons, soooo.

Have you ever ran at nearly 10 mph with both hands supporting a shotgun and somehow fired behind yourself? That's what my link wonders, how to support that scenario. Plus having "something hit" the officer would be laughed out of court if there were no proof of it coming from the shotgun. I can see the defense reenacting that in court.

 

[Bodhi]

Assassination attempts seem to be more about this particular president, not all presidents. This president may go down in history as the most shot-at president.

Previous incidents were minimized, IMO.

Political violence is common these days, from threats against town election officials and school board members up to the president. American culture used to share bedrock values, but we've fractured. The public square has been replaced with silos. Stochastic speech is accepted; normalized. And so is the violence it spawns. Civility, engagement, and common purpose are not central any more. Everything is viewed as binary.

I can speak from first-hand experience that the way we choose our leaders feeds division and creates a climate ripe for violence. I'm in New Hampshire. Our beloved first-in-the-nation primary gave us easy unfiltered access to presidential candidates for a year in advance. A candidate with few resources could invest time here meeting voters in informal settings and town halls. Unknown or unlikely candidates with good ideas and an effective ground game could generate buzz and parlay a good showing in Iowa and NH onto the national stage. President Carter and Senator McCain come to mind. Average folks like me would meet and speak to candidates from all parties, often several times. We took our job of vetting candidates seriously.

From my experience, face-to-face engagement in small settings promotes civility and engagement in a way big scripted rallies cannot. Big money funneled through SuperPACs has eroded retail politics. Candidates who are well-known and well-funded now skip small town halls that are open to everyone. They jet in for huge rallies of supporters instead and repeat canned stump speeches instead of engaging. Policies are reduced to soundbites. The more outrageous the candidates comments are, the more harshly the candidate villainizes others, the more air the soundbite gets. Discussion of national priorities has devolved into a blood sport.

Political violence is the foreseeable result of eroding norms. When we eschew common ground, stoke grievance, and dehumanize those who aren't like us, disgruntled individuals and groups will act on the rhetoric. If enough of us repudiate this shift in political culture, maybe we can de-escalate the violence that pervades civic life.

All MOO.

 

[PrairieWind]

Have you ever ran at nearly 10 mph with both hands supporting a shotgun and somehow fired behind yourself? That's what my link wonders, how to support that scenario. Plus having "something hit" the officer would be laughed out of court if there were no proof of it coming from the shotgun. I can see the defense reenacting that in court.

Why do you think he fired behind himself? Witnesses said he fired at the officer.

 

[Bodhi]

Wow. Well, I suppose according to his manifesto that does make sense. He claimed he only wanted to hurt Trump or possibly the other main political figures, and didn’t want to shoot LE or anyone unrelated. He didn’t get close enough to any political figures to try.

Still shocked the building wasn’t better guarded and he could rush into it at all.

Absolutely agree with you. There's been a major re-making of the intelligence community as well. Institutional history and experience are reduced.

 

[Bodhi]

Witnesses tell investigators Secret Service agent shot by suspect

The disclosure comes amid questions about whether a colleague wounded the agent or suspect Cole Tomas Allen at the White House Correspondents’ dinner.

www.usatoday.com

Witnesses stated he fired and the shot hit the agent. The one agent was the only one other than Allen that fired a weapon. Allen's shot gun contained a discharged cartridge.

Did you read the article? Four agents discharged weapons. The muzzle flashes are documented on video. Three of the four agents fired in the direction of other agents since the suspect was running past them. There is no muzzle flash from Allen's weapon.

Could Allen have fired after the video ends, as he was falling down or on the ground. Sure. All we know for a fact is that at least four agents fired weapons. Bullets from 3 of them could have struck another agent.