explainer
The incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner is just one of a series of security-related events Trump has been involved in since 2024.
Published April 26, 2026
President Donald Trump and senior White House officials were evacuated from the annual media gala after a gunman stormed the lobby and opened fire.
The suspect was arrested Saturday night at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Washington Hilton Hotel and taken into custody. US media identified the suspect as Cole Thomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California.
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Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said charges will be filed soon. It is unclear whether the suspect planned to target President Trump.
Presidents of the United States have been involved in various security-related incidents, including assassination attempts, during their presidential terms and campaigns.
Here is the timeline:
July 2024 – President Trump gets shot at rally in Pennsylvania
The President of the United States was shot and wounded at a campaign rally in Butler County on July 14, 2024, three months before he was elected to his second term.
At least five gunshots were heard around 6:15 p.m. (10:15 GMT) while President Trump was addressing the crowd. He collapsed, but several U.S. Secret Service agents rushed to the stage to protect him.
After several minutes, agents helped him to his feet and led him offstage in a motorcade, blood visible in his right ear and blood smeared on his face.
The Secret Service shot and killed the suspect within seconds of the shooting. Before he was taken away, he appeared to be pumping his fist and shouting “fight!” Towards the crowd.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) later named the shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
September 2024 – Second assassination attempt
On September 15, President Trump was at a resort in West Palm Springs, Florida, when the incident occurred around 2:00 pm local time (6:00 pm Japan time).
According to local media reports, President Trump was traveling between the fifth and sixth holes of the golf course with his friend and current special envoy Steve Witkoff when they heard gunshots. The course was immediately sealed off.
Officials said Secret Service agents found the gun barrel in the bushes near the edge of the course. Multiple officers fired at least four shots at him. It’s unclear whether the suspect fired at investigators.
The suspect was identified as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh.
Prosecutors said Routh had been in South Florida for about a month, and cell phone records showed him at a golf course and near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago mansion.
Routh was convicted in February of plotting to kill President Trump and sentenced to life in prison.
September 2025 – Off-duty police officer infiltrates President Trump’s security team
New York City Police Department (NYPD) officer Melvin Eng appeared armed and in full tactical gear at the Ryder Cup golf tournament at New York’s Bethpage Black Course, pretending to be part of President Trump’s security detail, according to US media reports.
It later emerged that Mr Eng was on medical leave and had not been given any formal assignment to report to the president, nor had he been assigned a role at the event.
As a result of the incident, Ng has reportedly been suspended pending further investigation by the NYPD.
February 2026 – Gunman dies after crashing into security perimeter of President Trump’s home
A man with a gas can and a shotgun was shot and killed by Secret Service agents after crashing his car into a secure area at President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
The president was in Washington at the time. Police identified the attacker as 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin from North Carolina. His family reported him missing, but a motive is unclear.
