He told agents he was Jesus Christ and wanted to be arrested
Near the gates of American political power, a young man carrying unresolved mental anguish and a loaded revolver returned to a place he had been warned away from, and the encounter ended as such collisions so often do — in violence, death, and an innocent bystander left to bear wounds not of their making. Nasire Best, 21, of Dundalk, Maryland, had twice before sought entry to the White House under the belief that he was Jesus Christ; the courts had intervened, but the deeper crisis had not been resolved. On Saturday, he arrived again — this time armed — and the machinery of security responded with lethal force, leaving investigators to untangle questions of culpability, trajectory, and what, if anything, might have interrupted this path before it reached its end.
- A young man with a documented history of mental health crises and two prior White House breach attempts returned Saturday armed with a revolver, escalating a pattern that courts and evaluations had failed to interrupt.
- Best opened fire at a Secret Service checkpoint near Pennsylvania Avenue, triggering an immediate armed response from uniformed officers — one of whom was positioned in a cruiser outside the security perimeter.
- An innocent bystander was struck in the crossfire, underwent emergency surgery, and remained in serious but stable condition Sunday, with investigators still unable to confirm whose bullet caused the wound.
- Best was killed in the exchange; Secret Service Director Sean Curran confirmed no officers were injured and praised their conduct in what he called a 'heightened political threat environment.'
- Three parallel investigations are now underway — MPD's force review, a U.S. Attorney's federal assessment, and an internal Secret Service inquiry — each tracing a different thread of accountability through the same violent afternoon.
On a Saturday afternoon near the corner of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, a 21-year-old Maryland man named Nasire Best pulled a revolver from a messenger bag and opened fire at a Secret Service checkpoint outside the White House. Uniformed officers returned fire, killing Best and wounding a bystander caught in the exchange.
It was not Best's first confrontation with security at that address. In June 2025, he had blocked an entry lane and told agents he was Jesus Christ, an incident that led to a mental health evaluation. The following month he tried again to access the grounds and was arrested on an unlawful entry charge, with a judge ordering him to stay away. He was released after arraignment but never appeared for a scheduled August hearing, triggering a no-bond bench warrant.
Saturday's shooting unfolded near a Starbucks on Pennsylvania Avenue. The bystander who was struck underwent surgery that night and was listed in serious but stable condition; investigators could not immediately determine whether the wound came from Best's gunfire or the officers' return fire. Broken glass and bullet holes were visible Sunday at the nearby White House History Shop.
Secret Service Director Sean Curran released a statement Sunday noting that no officers were hurt and praising their response in what he described as a heightened threat environment. The Metropolitan Police Department will lead the use-of-force investigation, with the U.S. Attorney's Office conducting a separate federal review. An internal Secret Service inquiry and a criminal investigation into Best's conduct are also running in parallel — each attempting to account for how a crisis long in the making arrived, finally, at this outcome.
A 21-year-old man from Dundalk, Maryland, opened fire at a Secret Service checkpoint outside the White House on Saturday afternoon, drawing return fire from uniformed officers that killed him and wounded a bystander caught in the crossfire. The suspect, identified as Nasire Best, had a documented history of attempting to breach White House security and had been under court order to stay away from the premises.
Best's troubles with the Secret Service began in June 2025, when he blocked an entry lane at the White House perimeter and told agents he was Jesus Christ and wanted to be arrested. That incident prompted a mental health evaluation. The following month, in July, he tried again to access the White House grounds. This time, Secret Service agents arrested him and charged him with unlawfully entering a federally controlled property. A judge ordered him to remain away from the location.
After his arraignment in D.C. Superior Court, Best was released on the unlawful entry charge. But he never showed up for a status hearing scheduled for August 7, 2025. The failure to appear triggered a no-bond bench warrant that confined him to the District of Columbia and authorized law enforcement to take him into custody on sight.
On Saturday, Best reappeared at the White House near the corner of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. He pulled a revolver from a messenger bag and began firing at the Secret Service checkpoint. Multiple uniformed division officers, including at least one positioned in a cruiser outside the security perimeter, returned fire. Best was killed in the exchange.
A bystander was struck during the shooting. Law enforcement sources could not immediately determine whether the wound came from the suspect's gunfire or from the officers' return fire. The victim underwent surgery Saturday night and was listed in serious but stable condition. The shooting occurred near a Starbucks on Pennsylvania Avenue, and damage was visible Sunday at the nearby White House History Shop, where broken glass and bullet holes marked the scene.
Secret Service Director Sean M. Curran released a statement Sunday acknowledging the incident and noting that no officers were injured. "Our officers continue to operate heroically in a heightened political threat environment," he said, adding that the agency's thoughts were with the wounded bystander.
The Metropolitan Police Department will lead the investigation into the officers' use of force, following standard procedure in the District when Secret Service personnel discharge weapons. Detectives from MPD's Internal Affairs Bureau Force Investigation Team will process the scene, collect ballistic and video evidence, interview witnesses and involved personnel, and determine the sequence of gunfire and injuries. The U.S. Attorney's Office for D.C. will separately review the incident to determine whether federal civil rights charges or D.C. criminal charges are warranted. These investigations run parallel to an internal Secret Service review and a criminal inquiry into Best's alleged conduct.
Citações Notáveis
Our officers continue to operate heroically in a heightened political threat environment. We are grateful no officers were injured.— Secret Service Director Sean M. Curran
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why did the Secret Service let him go after the July arrest if they knew he was a threat?
He was released after arraignment on the unlawful entry charge—that's standard procedure unless a judge sets bail or holds someone without bond. The real problem was that he skipped his August hearing. That's when the no-bond warrant went out.
So he was supposed to be tracked, but he wasn't?
The warrant was in the system, but he wasn't in custody. He was out in the world until he showed up at the White House again on Saturday.
The mental health evaluation in June—what happened with that?
The documents don't say what came of it. He told agents he was Jesus Christ and wanted to be arrested. That got him evaluated, but there's no record of what treatment or follow-up occurred, if any.
And the bystander—do we know who they are or what happened?
No identification yet. They were caught in the crossfire, underwent surgery, and are in serious but stable condition. The investigation will determine whether the wound came from the suspect or from the officers returning fire.
That matters legally, doesn't it?
It does. It affects how the shooting is characterized and what the use-of-force investigation concludes. The MPD will sort that out.
What's the timeline now?
The investigations are underway. MPD handles the officer-involved shooting inquiry. The U.S. Attorney reviews for potential federal charges. The Secret Service does its own internal review. All of that runs in parallel.