Texan accused of firing on Secret Service near Washington Monument

Michael Marx, a 45-year-old Texan, is accused of opening fire on Secret Service officers near the Washington Monument, setting off a brief lockdown of the White House and sending investigators back through his phone and digital media for signs of motive.

U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said prosecutors intend to charge Marx with assault on a federal officer and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. Pirro also said Marx allegedly shouted “F the White House” and “Kill me, kill me, kill me” three times while he was being taken to the hospital. Law enforcement sources said Marx has a Texas driver’s license and no obvious connection to Washington, and investigators are checking his devices and other locations for any possible threats or links to President Donald Trump or Vice President JD Vance.

The shooting unfolded around 3:30 p.m. Monday near 15th Street and Independence Avenue SW, outside the White House complex but close to the National Mall and Washington Monument. Secret Service said plainclothes agents first spotted a man who appeared to have a firearm, followed him briefly, and then saw uniformed officers move in. The suspect fled on foot and fired at the agents, who returned fire. The White House was briefly locked down while Trump was holding a small business event inside, and Vance’s motorcade had passed through the area shortly before the gunfire.

A juvenile bystander was struck by gunfire but did not suffer life-threatening injuries and was later released from the hospital, Pirro said. The teenager’s injury turned a security confrontation into a public safety incident that extended beyond federal protection detail and onto one of the busiest stretches of the city’s core.

The episode came just over a week after a separate attack tied to the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on April 25, 2026, when Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California, was charged with attempting to assassinate the president after a man armed with guns and knives stormed the lobby outside the event. The back-to-back incidents have intensified scrutiny of Secret Service security in Washington and raised fresh alarms about how quickly a threat near federal landmarks can put civilians, officers and nearby neighborhoods at risk.