Capitol officer killed after being rammed by driver; suspect shot dead by police

At 5 p.m. local time, the USCP tweeted the other officer who was struck by the vehicle “is in stable and non-threatening condition.”

The officer who died was identified as William “Billy” Evans, a member of the Capitol Police force for 18 years. He was a member of the Capitol Division’s First Responder’s Unit.

“It is with profound sadness that I share the news of the passing of Officer William ‘Billy’ Evans this afternoon from injuries he sustained following an attack at the North Barricade by a lone assailant,” Pittman said in a statement. “Please keep Officer Evans and his family in your thoughts and prayers.”

LAWMAKERS SHARE SUPPORT FOR POLICE OFFICERS INJURED IN CAPITOL ATTACK

In a statement earlier in the afternoon, the Capitol Police said: “USCP is responding to the North Barricade vehicle access point along [Constitution] Avenue for reports someone rammed a vehicle into two USCP officers. A suspect is in custody. Both officers are injured. All three have been transported to the hospital.”

The attack is under investigation, but authorities have not made any announcements about the identity of the suspect. Still, multiple news outlets, including NBC News, have cited law enforcement sources who identified the suspect as Noah Green, a 25-year-old Indiana native who may have been living in Virginia.

Details from a Facebook account, which has since been taken down, indicated he had recently lost his job and appeared to be a follower of the Nation of Islam, a black separatist group led by Louis Farrakhan.

“I have been tried with some of the biggest, unimaginable tests in my life. I am currently now unemployed after I left my job partly due to afflictions, but ultimately, in search of a spiritual journey,” Green posted on March 17.

Green also posted he believed the federal government was targeting him with “mind control,” according to CNN.

J. Scott Applewhite/AP

The incident caused the Capitol to go on lockdown, with staff members receiving messages saying that no entry or exit was permitted. The lockdown was lifted shortly after 3 p.m., with Capitol Police saying that there was no longer a present threat near the area. Police said the area, however, will remain restricted and that people should follow the direction of law enforcement around the area.

Acting Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert Contee said its homicide division, as well as the internal affairs division, will investigate the death of the officer and the suspect involved.

Contee, who expressed his condolences to the Capitol Police, said the department plans to work closely with the Capitol Police and other law enforcement partners in the early stages of the investigation.

Contee said the incident does not appear to be related to terrorism at this time and that the suspect is unknown to MPD and the Capitol Police.

A number of lawmakers expressed their support for the officers who were the victims of the incident. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ordered the flags at the Capitol to be flown at half-staff in honor of the officer who was killed, according to her deputy chief of staff.

“Today, America’s heart has been broken by the tragic and heroic death of one of our Capitol Police heroes: Officer William Evans,” Pelosi said in a statement, calling Evans a “martyr for our democracy.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell released a statement saying he is “heartbroken” that Evans was killed while on duty, adding, “The Senate is praying hard for the second injured officer and for Officer Evans’s family and friends.”

The White House released a statement from President Joe Biden, who was at Camp David in Maryland, following the deadly attack.

“[First lady] Jill and I were heartbroken to learn of the violent attack at a security checkpoint on the U.S. Capitol grounds,” Biden said, offering his condolences to Evans’s family and those grieving his death.

Following Pelosi’s order to fly Capitol flags at half-staff, Biden said he ordered flags to be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels throughout the United States and its territories until sunset on Tuesday.

“I have been receiving ongoing briefings from my Homeland Security Advisor, and will be getting further updates as the investigation proceeds,” Biden said, noting his gratitude for Capitol Police, the National Guard, and other first responders.

A video from Fox News reporter Jacqui Heinrich showed what appeared to be a car that rammed into the fencing barrier around the Capitol complex, with two people on stretchers.

The episode comes less than three months after the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, when supporters of defeated President Donald Trump stormed the building amid the counting of Electoral College votes in the House chamber that ratified President Joe Biden’s 2020 win.

Since then, the Capitol complex has been placed under extraordinary security measures. Until recently, a perimeter of fencing surrounded the Capitol and nearby office buildings.

The incident could affect how long National Guard troops and a fencing perimeter erected after Jan. 6 remain around the Capitol. An outer perimeter of fencing was removed last week.

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Police barricades have previously been a target on Capitol Hill. In 2013, a Connecticut woman tried to breach a barrier at the White House, setting off a high-speed car chase that put the Capitol on lockdown and ended with her being shot dead by police.