US Bishops' President Archbishop Coakley Condemns Shooting at White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner

The 2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner, held on Saturday, April 25, 2026, was cut short and ultimately cancelled after a shooting incident occurred near the security screening area.
At approximately 8:36 p.m. EDT, a suspect identified as
Cole Tomas Allen, age 31, fired a shot near the Washington Hilton's security check.
One law enforcement officer was shot in the vest but is expected to recover. No other attendees were reported injured.
The suspect, Allen, who was from California, possessed a shotgun, a handgun, and several knives, with initial reports suggesting he targeted administration officials.
President Trump, the First Lady, and Vice President Vance were immediately removed by Secret Service, while many of the 2,600 guests took cover.
 The ballroom was cleared by 9:20 p.m. EDT, cancelling the event.
WHCA President Weijia Jiang stated the dinner would be rescheduled within 30 days. (Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/what-we-know-white-house-correspondents-dinner-shooting-rcna342143)

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Archbishop Coakley Condemns Shooting at White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner 2026

Following the news of the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) offered the following statement...
April 26, 2026
WASHINGTON - Following the news of the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) offered the following statement:

“We are grateful the lives of the President, those who protect him, and everyone in attendance last night were spared from serious harm. Let us all pray for our elected leaders and public officials that they may receive God’s blessings. Because human life is a precious gift, there is no room for violence of any kind in our society.”

###USCCB Release