Federal prosecutors released a video on Thursday showing the moment a man armed with guns and knives allegedly tried to storm the White House Correspondents' Association dinner and assassinate President Donald Trump. The incident occurred at the Washington Hilton on Saturday night, disrupting one of the most prominent annual events in the nation's capital.
Video Evidence Released
Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney for Washington, posted the video on social media amid questions about whose bullet struck a Secret Service officer as Cole Tomas Allen ran through security with a long gun toward the hotel ballroom. The ballroom was packed with journalists, administration officials, and other dignitaries. Prosecutors had previously claimed the agent was shot in a bullet-resistant vest during the melee but had not confirmed that Allen fired the shot. Pirro stated on Thursday that there is no evidence the officer was hit by friendly fire.
The video appears to show Allen running through a magnetometer and pointing his weapon at the agent, who fired back five times, according to authorities. It remains unclear from the video at what moment Allen's weapon discharged. Allen was injured but not shot during the attack.
Court Proceedings
Allen agreed earlier Thursday to remain jailed while awaiting trial. He did not enter a plea during his brief appearance in federal court before US Magistrate Moxila Upadhyaya. Allen, 31, from Torrance, California, worked as a part-time tutor for a test preparation company and is an amateur video game developer.
In court papers pressing for Allen's continued detention, prosecutors wrote on Wednesday that Allen took a picture of himself in his hotel room just minutes before the incident, outfitted with an ammunition bag, a shoulder gun holster, and a sheathed knife. In a message that authorities say sheds light on his motive, Allen referred to himself as a "Friendly Federal Assassin" and alluded to grievances over a range of Trump administration actions.
Defense Arguments
Allen's lawyers agreed during the hearing to keep their client behind bars for now, after initially arguing in court papers that he should be released. In a court filing on Wednesday, the defense wrote that the government's case is "based upon inferences drawn about Mr. Allen's intent that raise more questions than answers" and noted that Allen's writings never mentioned Trump by name. The defense left open the possibility of pressing for Allen's release before trial. "The government's evidence of the charged offense — the attempted assassination of the president — is thus built entirely upon speculation, even under the most generous reading of its theory," defense lawyers wrote.
Security Response
Secret Service Director Sean Curran defended the agency's security plan for the event and said he would not change it. In a Fox News interview, Curran stated that the attack was stopped within seconds at the outermost perimeter of a multi-layered security bubble around the president. The distance from the magnetometers to the podium where Trump was seated was 355 feet, with two sets of stairs, a doorway, and many more armed Secret Service officers in between. "The site was set up perfectly," Curran said.
The nearly six-minute video released by Pirro shows Allen walking back and forth down a hallway the day before the attack and briefly checking out the hotel gym. Footage from the security checkpoint shows about a dozen federal officers taking down magnetometers and casually standing around when the gunman emerges from a doorway and starts sprinting toward them. The gunman quickly reaches the officers before most of them appear to notice him. Only one officer visible in the video appears to have drawn his gun before the gunman passed; Pirro said he is the one who was shot and returned fire.
Charges and Potential Penalties
Allen was charged on Monday with attempted assassination of the president, as well as two additional firearms counts, including discharging a weapon during a crime of violence. He faces up to life in prison if convicted of the assassination count alone.
