Texas Man Charged After Shooting at Secret Service on National Mall

Federal prosecutors charged Michael Marx, 45, of Midland, Texas, after a shooting near the Washington Monument turned the National Mall into a chaotic public safety scene and wounded multiple bystanders. The case has become a stark test of how quickly a law-enforcement encounter can spill into danger in one of Washington’s most heavily visited civic spaces.

According to the complaint, the shooting happened around 3:40 p.m. on May 4 near 15th Street and Madison Drive NW and 15th Street and Independence Avenue SW, while Vice President J.D. Vance’s motorcade was departing the White House and passing through the area. A plainclothes Secret Service agent first saw Marx appearing to conceal a firearm and alerted the Secret Service Joint Operations Center, prompting uniformed officers to move in.

Prosecutors say Marx fled, drew a firearm from his waistband and ran toward civilians before turning to fire at one of the pursuing officers. A civilian witness standing behind that officer was wounded in the leg, and federal officials said a teenage bystander was also struck by gunfire. Officers returned fire, hitting Marx in the hand, left arm and upper abdomen before he collapsed at the intersection and received aid.

Marx faces three federal charges: assaulting federal officers with a dangerous weapon, using and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Investigators recovered a handgun loaded with 9mm ammunition near where he fell, and prosecutors said he did not have a license to carry a handgun in Washington, D.C.

Authorities identified Marx through a Texas driver’s license and said he also used aliases including Patrick Michael and Michael Zavici. ABC News reported that investigators were executing search warrants on his phone, digital media and other locations to determine why he was in Washington and whether he posed a threat to specific individuals or entities, including President Donald Trump and Vance.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro said Marx allegedly shouted, "F the White House" and "Kill me, kill me, kill me" while being transported to the hospital. The details described by prosecutors point to a rapidly escalating confrontation that endangered officers, bystanders and a politically sensitive corridor at the center of the capital.