Driver dies after crashing into White House gate
There was no threat to the White House, the Secret Service said. Police did not identify the driver.By Martin Weil
May 5, 2024 at 4:06 a.m. EDT
A motorist died after crashing a speeding car into an outer gate at the White House complex late Saturday, the Secret Service said.
“There was no threat to the White House,” Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a post on X, and “no threat or public safety implications.”
The crash occurred shortly before 10:30 p.m., the Secret Service said.
Unspecified “security protocols were implemented” and the vehicle was cleared by Secret Service officers who tried to render aid, according to the Secret Service statement. The driver, described by D.C. police as an adult male, was found dead, the Secret Service and police said. The motorist was not identified.
D.C. police said the crash is being investigated “only as a traffic crash” at this time.
The Secret Service said it was continuing to look into the incident, and the investigation of the crash death will be conducted by the D.C. police crash unit.
The address given by the D.C. police appears to be the Pennsylvania Avenue intersection near the southeast corner of the White House complex, near the Treasury Department, the Ellipse and the South Lawn. It is about 1,000 feet from the White House itself.
The D.C. government alert system said 15th Street was closed between New York and Constitution avenues.
