National Guard member and suspect wounded in shooting on Capitol Hill, DC police say

As of 11:11 p.m. ET, Monday, Oct. 19, 2026

Update (Oct. 19, 2026, 11:11 p.m. ET): This story has been updated with the suspect's identity and the charges against him from a Metropolitan Police Department news release; with the units investigating and the U.S. Attorney's Office's review, per the release; with a D.C. Joint Task Force spokesperson's statement that the Guard member was released from the hospital, as reported by 7News (WJLA); with the District of Columbia National Guard's post on X acknowledging the MPD release; and with the emergency closure of Café 8 and Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen's earlier call for it, as reported by 7News (WJLA). A line based on a single outlet's report of the Guard member's condition has been replaced.

A National Guard member and a suspect were shot and wounded late Sunday in the 400 block of 8th Street SE in Washington, the Metropolitan Police Department said.

"MPD is investigating a shooting in the 400 block of 8th Street SE involving a National Guardsman," the department said in a post on X at 1:30 a.m. ET Monday. ABC News also reported the statement.

Interim Police Chief Jeffery Carroll told reporters at the scene that Guard members who had been parked in a vehicle on the block saw a fight break out on the sidewalk at about 11:10 p.m. Sunday and got out to try to stop it, and then heard gunshots after a man who had been involved in the fight pulled out a firearm and began shooting. Guard members immediately ordered him to put down the gun, Carroll said. The man pointed the weapon toward them and Guard members returned fire, according to Carroll. Recapping the shooting later in the briefing, Carroll said the man "discharged a round at the National Guard members who returned fire at that suspect".

Seven or eight Guard members in a parked van had been monitoring the fight on a sidewalk in the Eastern Market neighborhood, Carroll said, The Associated Press reported. The confrontation began on the sidewalk near the entrance to an alley, and the man then ran into the alley, where he fired again, Carroll said. Three Guard members fired their weapons, and it was not yet known which of them struck the suspect, he said.

The incident happened in front of a D.C. Fire and EMS station on 8th Street SE, and police believe the fight began inside a nearby establishment, FOX 5 DC reported, citing police.

One Guard member and the suspect were struck, Carroll said. The Guard member was hit in the leg, he said. Asked by a reporter whether the suspect had been shot in the abdomen, Carroll said that was correct. Both were taken to local hospitals and are expected to survive, he said at the scene early Monday. Guard members began giving aid, and DC Fire and EMS personnel from a firehouse beside the scene treated both wounded people, Carroll said. Both men were brought inside the fire station, and firefighters called police to the scene, according to police, FOX 5 DC reported. WJLA also reported that the Guard member was shot in the leg and the suspect in the abdominal area. The Guard member was treated at the hospital and has since been released, a spokesperson for the D.C. Joint Task Force said, as reported by 7News (WJLA).

In a news release Monday, MPD said the Guard members, assigned to patrol the Barracks Row corridor, gave the suspect commands to drop the firearm, and that the suspect "attempted to flee while simultaneously discharging his firearm towards the National Guard members, striking one of them in the process." The suspect was detained afterward and held until MPD officers arrived, the release said. Police identified him as Jerrell Jackson, 41, of Southeast D.C. Jackson was arrested and charged with Assault with a Dangerous Weapon (Gun), Assault on a Police Officer and Emergency Personnel, Carrying a Pistol without a License, and Felon in Possession of a Firearm, according to the release. He is charged and has not been convicted. The suspect's firearm was recovered at the scene, and MPD released a photo of it with the serial number redacted, the release said.

MPD's Internal Affairs Bureau and the First District Detective Unit are investigating, and the National Guard-involved shooting is under investigation by the Internal Affairs Bureau's Force Investigations Team, which investigates all law enforcement officer-involved shootings in the District, according to the MPD release. "The United States Attorney's Office will independently review the facts and evidence in the case," the release said. Carroll said there was no further threat to the community. Police asked anyone with information to call 202-727-9099 or text 50411.

A notice of closure has been posted at Café 8 on Barracks Row, outside which the shooting happened, stating that D.C.'s police chief is closing the establishment under the Emergency Suspension of Liquor Licenses Act of 2005, 7News (WJLA) reported Monday evening. The emergency authority allows the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board to close a business for up to 96 hours, subject to a hearing and review, according to 7News. Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen had called for an emergency shutdown of Café 8, citing repeated disturbances and violence in the area, 7News reported. The emergency closure does not establish that Café 8 or its employees were responsible for Sunday's shooting, and no criminal charges against the business have been announced in connection with the incident, 7News reported.

President Donald Trump deployed the Guard to Washington in August 2025 as part of what he said was a crime-fighting mission, The Associated Press reported.

The District of Columbia National Guard said in a post on X at 3:43 p.m. ET Monday that it "acknowledges the Metropolitan Police Department's (MPD) news release regarding the shooting involving National Guard personnel assigned to Joint Task Force–District of Columbia." The Army had not commented publicly on the shooting as of 11:11 p.m. ET.