What we know about safety measures at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner

The suspect in custody in connection with the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner appears to have slipped through the outermost layers of security at the event, where President Donald Trump was scheduled to speak, as he was a guest at the hotel, officials said Saturday.

The suspect in the shooting was identified as Cole Thomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, two law enforcement officials told The Associated Press. Officials told reporters after the incident that Allen was armed with a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives.

Security at the annual presidential event is always tight, especially given the venue’s history (45 years ago, the Washington Hilton was the scene of an assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan), and law enforcement maintained that its “layered defenses” worked as designed. Still, the incident was sure to raise further questions about security around the president and political events following high-profile acts of political violence in recent years.

Here’s what we know about correspondent dinner safety.

Interim Police Chief Jeffrey Carroll of the Washington Metropolitan Police Department told reporters Saturday night that investigators believe the suspect was staying at the hotel and was able to gain entry that way at the time of the incident.

The hotel was closed to the public starting at 2pm ET on Saturday in preparation for the dinner party, which began at 8pm. Dozens of protesters gathered outside in the rain, with most of their criticism directed at the media attending the event.

Access to the hotel was restricted to hotel guests, those with a ticket to the dinner itself, an invitation to one of the receptions held at the hotel before or after the dinner, or documentation from the White House Correspondents’ Association indicating their participation in the dinner.

The 2,300 guests who attended the event, held in the hotel’s cavernous basement ballroom, had to pass several additional checks to gain access to their rooms, including presenting their tickets to association volunteers and hotel staff and passing through magnetometers operated by the Secret Service and Transportation Security Administration.

Even after the suspect checked into a hotel, he was not immediately released. Security camera footage released by President Trump on social media shortly after the incident shows the gunman walking past security guards who appeared to be dismantling metal detectors. Once the president was seated in the ballroom, no further attendees were allowed into the secure area and were escorted out.

“This shows that our defenses in depth are working,” said Secret Service Director Sean Curran. Carroll echoed his comments, saying that the security plan for that night was developed by the Secret Service and that “that security plan worked tonight.”

Additional safety measures were in place within the banquet hall of the dinner itself.

The U.S. Secret Service maintained a separate perimeter around the president, including a buffer separating the president and other attendees at the head table from the rest of the attendees. Armor plating was hidden under the table where President Trump was sitting. Secret Service agents were stationed in front of the stage and in the wings, and heavily armed anti-assault agents were also on hand to respond to any threats. Security details for dozens of other notable attendees were also in the ballroom.

A hotel spokesperson referred questions about security measures to the U.S. Secret Intelligence Service.

The hotel itself has a long presidential history, with rooms regularly booked and the lobby bar packed daily to watch the event, which has attracted Washington’s elite, celebrities like George Clooney and Kim Kardashian, and even hosts like Jimmy Kimmel and Trevor Noah.

The hotel is known for its correspondents’ dinners, but it also regularly hosts large-scale events in the capital, especially those featuring the president. This was the scene of John Hinckley Jr.’s shooting of Reagan on March 30, 1981.

As Mr. Reagan returned to his limousine after giving his speech, Mr. Hinckley shot him with a revolver and seriously injured him. Hinckley believed the attack would impress actress Jodie Foster.

Following the incident, the hotel underwent extensive security renovations specifically for presidential accommodation, including a secure garage designed to accommodate the president’s limousine, and private elevators and stairs leading to secure suites reserved for personal use.

The suite has its own bathroom, which the hotel traditionally decorates with monogrammed towels when the president uses the space several times a year.

Because of this venue’s long presidential history, the Secret Service has used the annual event to train some of its agents, as the venue has been extensively investigated for decades.

But since the 2017 Las Vegas shooting, many major hotels have also tightened their security protocols, in some cases adopting measures such as regular room checks and policies aimed at flagging widespread privacy requests. It was not immediately clear when those involved checked into the hotel on Saturday or whether such measures had any impact on the case.