On June 14, 2017, a routine morning practice for the annual bipartisan Congressional Baseball Game became a ten-minute gun battle at Eugene Simpson Stadium Park in Alexandria, Virginia. About 24 Republican members of Congress were practicing for the charity game, including House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, team coach Roger Williams, senators Rand Paul and Jeff Flake, and representatives Mo Brooks, Brad Wenstrup, and others. James T. Hodgkinson, a 66-year-old Illinois man who had been living in a van near the field, reportedly asked whether Republicans or Democrats were practicing before taking up a position outside a fence near the third-base dugout. Armed with a legally purchased SKS rifle and a 9mm Smith & Wesson handgun, he opened fire on the players, who were largely unarmed and trapped on the field. Hodgkinson fired 70 rounds in total, striking Scalise in the hip, legislative aide Zack Barth in the calf, and lobbyist and former baseball player Matt Mika multiple times in the chest and arm. Scalise suffered catastrophic internal injuries as the bullet traveled across his pelvis; Mika sustained damage to his lungs, sternum, and ribs.
The attack was prevented from becoming a massacre by the three U.S. Capitol Police officers assigned to protect Scalise. Officers David Bailey and Crystal Griner immediately returned fire while Bailey moved onto the field to shield the congressmen. Griner was shot in the ankle while helping the wounded Mika, and Bailey suffered a minor injury, but they kept Hodgkinson pinned down until Alexandria officers arrived. Officer Alexander Jensen eventually hit Hodgkinson with rifle fire, while Bailey also struck him; Officer Kevin Jobe then helped disarm and handcuff him at approximately 7:15 a.m. Hodgkinson died later that day from multiple gunshot wounds. Scalise underwent several surgeries and months of rehabilitation, while Mika, Barth, and the wounded officers recovered; Williams sprained his ankle while diving for cover. The FBI ultimately classified the incident as an act of domestic terrorism committed by a domestic violent extremist with a personalized violent ideology, and Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring described it as terrorism fueled by rage against Republican legislators. The shooting permanently altered security discussions surrounding congressional events and underscored how the presence of Capitol Police likely saved numerous lives.
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