Accused White House Intruder Pleads Not Guilty

Accused White House Intruder Pleads Not Guilty

By Matt Hansen, Tribune Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON — The Iraq war veteran accused of running into the White House with a knife on Sept. 19 pleaded not guilty Wednesday to three criminal charges in a case that exposed security lapses in the Secret Service.

Omar Gonzalez, 42, stared straight ahead and said nothing during his court appearance in Washington. He waived his right to a detention hearing, meaning he will remain in custody.

According to court papers, Gonzalez climbed over the north fence of the White House, sprinted unimpeded across the north lawn, opened the unlocked front door of the executive mansion and then tussled with guards who chased him on the first floor before he was finally subdued in the East Room.

President Barack Obama and his family were not home at the time.

AFP Photo/Brendan Smialowski

Advertising

Start your day with National Memo Newsletter

Know first.

The opinions that matter. Delivered to your inbox every morning

A Year Of Mourning Since Uvalde Massacre -- And What Have We Done?

Crosses adorn a makeshift memorial for the victims at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas

Today’s date, May 24, marks a year since an 18 year-old male, armed with an AR-15 style semiautomatic rifle, walked into the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, and shot to death 19 grade-school children and three teachers. He wounded 17 others who somehow managed to survive, even though most of them had been shot and lay bleeding for over an hour before police officers finally confronted the shooter and killed him.

Keep reading...Show less
{{ post.roar_specific_data.api_data.analytics }}