On Saturday evening, May 23, 2026, Secret Service agents fatally shot 21-year-old Nasire Best after he opened fire with a handgun near a White House security checkpoint.
The confrontation occurred around 6:00 PM local Washington D.C. time. Best approached a perimeter checkpoint at the intersection of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, near the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. The suspect pulled a weapon out of his bag and began firing directly at law enforcement officers. Secret Service uniform division police instantly returned fire, striking the suspect.
Best was rushed to George Washington University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. No Secret Service agents were harmed. However, an adult civilian bystander was struck during the crossfire and remains in critical condition.
Media outlets identified the deceased shooter as Nasire Best, a 21-year-old man originally from Maryland who had been living in Washington D.C. for 18 months. Best had a well-documented history of mental health conditions. He was deeply familiar to federal authorities, having been detained by the Secret Service at least twice in the summer of 2025.
Court records and social media posts show Best suffered from religious delusions, including claims that he was "Jesus Christ" and the "son of God". He had previously violated a court-issued stay-away order regarding the White House complex. The shooting triggered an immediate lockdown of the White House complex. Journalists working on the North Lawn were ordered by armed agents to dive for cover and sprint inside the press briefing room.
President Donald Trump was inside the White House residence during the exchange of gunfire but was completely unharmed. The gunman never managed to breach the inner security gates. President Trump later posted on Truth Social, thanking the Secret Service for their "swift and professional action" against a suspect he noted had a "violent history and possible obsession" with the building. An active investigation is currently being led by the FBI, the Metropolitan Police Department, and the ATF to uncover how the suspect obtained the firearm
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