Secret service agents respond during the White House Correspondents Dinner, Saturday, April 25, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Tom Brenner)
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WASHINGTON (AURN News) — Cole Tomas Allen, a 31-year-old teacher from Torrance, California, accused of opening fire at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday night, is being arraigned in federal court in Washington.
The suspect faces charges of assault on a federal officer and using a firearm during a crime of violence, with more charges expected.
President Donald Trump speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House after an unspecified threat at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in Washington, Saturday, April 25, 2026, as Vice President JD Vance, FBI director Kash Patel, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche listen. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Authorities said he was a hotel guest at the Washington Hilton and had a shotgun, a handgun and several knives.
In the hours before the attack, the suspect posted to social media and sent writings to his family that authorities say stated he intended to target Trump administration officials, calling himself a “friendly federal assassin.”
Members of law enforcement control shooting suspect Cole Tomas Allen during the White House Correspondents Dinner, Saturday, April 25, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) ADDITION: Adds name of shooting suspect after name shared by law enforcement officials
Hotel surveillance video captured him running past a security checkpoint dressed in black with a bag in hand. One officer was struck, but his ballistic vest protected him. The officer has since been released from the hospital.
Allen never reached the ballroom where President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and several members of the cabinet were seated.
White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris is a native Washingtonian and University of South Carolina alumna. Her passion is mentoring young adults by teaching community empowerment and media education. She is an NAB member and board member of the Thurgood Marshall Center and was presented the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award for contributing more than 4,000 hours of community service under the Obama Administration.
