It was a quiet Monday afternoon near the White House—until a flash of metal and a burst of gunfire shattered the calm.
Surveillance cameras captured the moment a man pulled a handgun and fired toward law enforcement officers, just seconds after Vice President JD Vance’s motorcade had rolled through the area.
The suspect, 45-year-old Michael Marx from Texas, was spotted near 15th Street and Independence Avenue NW—less than half a mile from the White House. Officers noticed what looked like a concealed firearm.
When agents closed in, Marx bolted. As he ran, he yanked a pistol from his waistband.
The chase tore through a busy crosswalk packed with pedestrians. Then Marx spun around and squeezed off a round in the direction of a Secret Service officer.
A civilian standing behind that officer, previously described as a juvenile, took a bullet to the leg. He was rushed to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Images from the court filing show chaos: people scrambling, the suspect raising his weapon, and the muzzle flash as he fired.
Secret Service agents did not hesitate. They returned fire, striking Marx in the hand, left arm, and upper abdomen before taking him into custody.
The entire incident unfolded moments after Vance’s motorcade had passed. Deputy Director Matt Quinn later said there’s no evidence the shooting was aimed at the vice president.
Marx was taken to a hospital—his condition still undisclosed.
At the scene, investigators recovered a 9mm SIG Sauer handgun and seized electronic devices for analysis.
Court records reveal a damning backstory: Marx was not licensed to carry a firearm in Washington, D.C. He also carried a prior felony drug conviction in Florida—making his possession of any gun illegal.
Now he faces federal charges: assault on federal officers with a dangerous weapon, using and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
But the story gets darker. As medics rushed him to the hospital, Marx allegedly spat at officers and screamed, “F--- the White House” and “Kill me, kill me, kill me.”
“My understanding is they observed a print,” Quinn said, describing how trained surveillance personnel first spotted the threat. “Upon making contact, that individual fled, withdrew a firearm, and fired in the direction of our agents. They returned fire and engaged.”
When asked if the suspect was targeting President Donald Trump, Quinn was blunt: “I can’t say—I’m not going to guess on that. But we will find out.”
