An unidentified man was shot and killed Monday several blocks from protesters rallying against President Donald Trump and his decision to deploy the National Guard in Washington, D.C. in order to combat crime.
Trump’s announcement on Monday during a press briefing comes after a series of high-profile attacks in the city this year. The Metropolitan Police Department told the Daily Caller News Foundation that officers responded around 7:01 p.m. to the 1200 block of 12th Street NW, where they found an unconscious adult male with multiple gunshot wounds.
After lifesaving efforts by D.C. Fire and EMS, the man was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
About 30 minutes earlier, at 6:24 p.m., FOX5 reported protesters had gathered in Dupont Circle. The large group was seen with signs and loudly cheering before moving north along 14th Street to oppose Trump’s move to federalize the city.
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But around 6:16 p.m., Bleacher Report digital host Melissa Kim posted videos to X showing some protesters had already reached 14th Street NW between U and Q streets after marching from Dupont Circle. According to Google Maps, the location is roughly 0.6 miles — less than a 15-minute walk — from where the shooting occurred.
In an interview with FOX5, a nearby resident who heard the gunfire told the outlet it was a “shame” the shooting happened on the eve of Trump’s decision.
“I heard those shots. They fired off pretty quickly. My cat was sitting in the window and immediately bolted to the back of the house,” the woman said. “I thought it was fireworks at first, but I got kind of scared when I heard them go off so quickly and so incredibly loud with the echo.”
When asked how she was feeling after the incident, the D.C. resident said she was “a little bit shaken.”
“With this happening, it really is just kind of a shame that this would happen on the eve of that news,” she said.
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During a press conference on Wednesday, Trump floated the idea of bringing in the National Guard to halt D.C.’s crime. On Saturday, the president took to Truth Social, writing that the nation’s capital had become “one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the World,” promising it would “soon be one of the safest.”
On Saturday evening, police descended on the Navy Yard neighborhood after receiving reports of gunfire among juveniles. According to FOX5, a juvenile male was arrested after firing a gun in the direction of other juveniles.
The incident comes on the heels of former Department of Government Efficiency staff member Edward Coristine, also known online as “Big Balls,” being severely beaten on Aug. 3 after intervening in an attempted unarmed carjacking near Dupont Circle.
While not naming Coristine, the president posted to Truth Social on Tuesday about the city’s crime being “totally out of control,” sharing a photo of the victim — later identified as Coristine — sitting on the floor covered in blood.
Democrat lawmakers and legacy media pundits claim Trump is overreaching his powers. They’ve said the city’s crime has dropped 35% in 2024. Data from local police, however, leaves out certain crimes such as felonies and aggravated assaults, allowing crime rates to appear lower compared with 2020.
The attack on Coristine comes shortly after GOP intern Eric Tarpinian-Jachym was fatally shot in the city on June 30 and also after two Israeli Embassy staff members were gunned down near the Capital Jewish Museum in May.
