Just before 2:30 p.m. EST, there were reports of shots fired outside the U.S. Capitol.
The building was immediately put on lockdown, which was lifted around 2:50 p.m.
At a 3:30 p.m. press conference after the incident ended, U.S. Capitol Police Chief Kim Dine confirmed that a black car driven by a female suspect tried to pass a barricade at the White House. Secret Service agents attempted to stop the vehicle, Dine said, before it escaped on to Pennsylvania Ave. NW, the street that connects the White House and U.S. Capitol grounds.
The car was then pursued past the Capitol, where the chase ultimately ended after the vehicle crashed into a security a barrier near the Hart Senate Office Building, northeast of the Capitol building. The driver was then shot as she got out of the vehicle, Terrance Gainer, the Senate’s Sergeant at Arms, said. Authorities later pronounced her dead. Additionally, a toddler present in the car was taken to a local hospital and is in good condition, Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier announced.
One police officer suffered injuries during the pursuit when his cruiser crashed — they were said to be non-life-threatening.
Read more at USA Today.
See tweets and photos from the scene below:
