Suspect Identified As Tennessee Pastor — Previously Banned From Capitol Building
March 29 2016, Updated 6:52 p.m. ET
The U.S. Capitol and White House underwent a temporary lockdown on Monday, March 28, after gunshots were reportedly fired at the Visitors Center at the Capitol Complex.
The suspected shooter has since been identified as Larry Russell Dawson, a 66-year-old pastor from Antioch, Tennessee, who (according to the Associated Press) was previously issued a "stay away order" by D.C. Superior Court after blurting out that he was a "prophet of God" in congress last October.
U.S. Capitol Police Chief Matthew Verderosa later confirmed that authorities "shot the suspect after he pulled out a weapon at the Capitol Visitor Center." Some reports cited the firearm as a "pellet gun."
Dawson, who remains in surgery at a nearby hospital, is known to police from incidents in the past, Verderosa shared. The southern preacher is said to have previously visited Washington on a number of occasions, calling for a higher minimum wage on behalf of his church.
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Dawson will be presented to the District of Columbia Superior Court once he is discharged.
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