Virginia Congressional Shooting: Rep. Steve Scalise Critical With More Surgeries Needed; 5 Others Injured; Suspect Dead

Scalise, who underwent surgery for a gunshot wound to the left hip, was listed in critical condition Wednesday night, MedStar Washington Hospital Center said. The bullet traveled across Scalise's pelvis, fracturing bones, injuring internal organs and causing severe bleeding. He underwent immediate surgery and another procedure to stop bleeding; the hospital says he has received multiple units of blood. Officials said Scalise underwent additional surgery Thursday, according to CNBC.

The gunman apparently targeted Republicans. Legislators who were at the ball field told reporters that they think they unwittingly spoke to the gunman before shots erupted. Rep. Jeff Duncan of South Carolina told reporters that the suspect asked him in the parking lot before the shooting if the team practicing was the Democratic or Republican baseball team. Duncan told the man it was the GOP team on the field.

A short time later, gunshots began.

Hodgkinson, 66, owns a home inspection business, according to The Washington Post, and Sen. Bernie Sanders said the shooter had volunteered for his presidential campaign. An FBI spokesman declined to answer questions at a press conference on whether the attack was politically motivated, if Scalise was a target because he's a Republican leader, whether the shooting was an assassination attempt or if it was terrorism. A Facebook page that is believed to be run by Hodgkinson had posts railing against the GOP and calling Trump a traitor.

The FBI says that Hodgkinson had been living in the Alexandria area since March. He was not working, and officials would not say if he was perceived as a threat before the shootings.

Trump announced at 11:37 a.m. from the White House that the suspect died. At a late-afternoon press conference, FBI Special Agent In Charge Tim Slater said agents are examining Hodgkinson's electronic devices. (For more on this and other local Alexandria News stories, subscribe to the Alexandria Patch for daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. You can also subscribe to the New Orleans Patch.)

President Trump Asks For Prayers

The president said that Scalise and all those injured have the prayers of his family and the nation. "We may have our differences, but we do well in times like these to remember that everyone who serves in our nation's capital is here because, above all, they love our country," Trump said.

The victims in the nonfatal shootings were identified by House Speaker Paul Ryan as:

• Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana
• Capitol Police officer Crystal Griner
• Lobbyist Matt Mika, director of government relations for Tyson's Food
• Zach Barth, a legislative aide who was shot in the leg

• Capitol Police Special Agent David Bailey was treated and released for a secondary injury
• Texas Rep. Roger Williams, who injured his leg and ankle diving for cover

Deputy Chief Fred Robinson of the Capitol Police said that Griner was shot in the ankle but is in good condition.

A spokesman for Tysons Foods told The Post Mika was hospitalized and his condition is unknown.

Williams told reporters that Barth has been released from the hospital and will recover.

The FBI says it is investigating Hodgkinson's associates, whereabouts, social media impressions and potential motives. Authorities are running a trace on a rifle and handgun the suspect had with him, while other investigators are searching Hodgkinson’s home in Illinois.

Anyone with information about Hodgkinson should call the FBI's 24-hour access line at 1-800-CALL-FBI and select option 1.

Rep. Mike Bost of Illinois, who represents the district where Hodgkinson lived, said via Twitter that the assailant had contacted his Congressional office 10 times between June 2016 and May 2017. While Hodgkinson disagreed with the Republican agenda, “the correspondence never appeared threatening or raised concerns that anger would turn to physical action.”

Bipartisan Ballgame Will Go On

Leaders from the Congressional baseball teams spoke in the afternoon and said the game will go on with the Fallen Officers Fund added to the list of charities to receive proceeds from the game. C-SPAN will televise the matchup.

Rep. Joe Barton was at the baseball field with his son when the shots were fired; they were not injured.

“We’re united, not as Republicans and Democrats, but as United States representatives," Barton said. "We’d ask the American people to say a prayer for those who were shot.”

This is the first time a federal lawmaker has been shot since 2011, when then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was shot at a public meeting in Tuscon, Arizona. Giffords had no protective detail at the time, and the shooting led to heightened security concerns for members of Congress. Giffords has since become a vocal advocate for gun control.

"I am heartbroken for the pain of Congressman Scalise, the other victims, and their family, friends, and colleagues who survived," Giffords said Wednesday in a statement. "I am thankful for the great courage of the Capitol Police, who were my protectors after I was shot and became my friends. I also know the courage it takes to recover from a shooting like this, and I know Steve and everyone there this morning have courage in great supply."

Congressmen Describes Baseball Field Shootings

Rep. Roger Williams of Texas, coach of the GOP baseball team, walked on crutches to a podium to talk to reporters Wednesday afternoon.

“There could have easily been 25 deaths or more today. … But officers Griner and Bailey prevented that, and my family and I will be forever grateful,” he said fighting back tears.

Williams said he was on the third base line hitting ground balls when, unknown to him, Hodgkinson was about 25 feet away. When he heard the first shot, Williams thought it might be a car backfiring, but as other shots were heard, people yelled, “He’s got a gun.”

Williams dove into the first base dugout, and his staffer, Zach Barth, landed in his arms with a gunshot wound to the leg. Sen. Jeff Flake used his belt as a tourniquet to stop the bleeding.

Michigan Rep. Mike Bishop described how methodical the shooter was in taking aim and firing at the players on the ball field.

“I felt I was being hunted,” he told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.

Without the Capitol Police officers advancing on the shooter, even though both officers were wounded, Bishop said he's sure he would have died and so would his colleagues.

Rep. Barry Loudermilk of Georgia was at the baseball practice, along with his chief of staff; both were unharmed. "If it hadn’t been for the two Capitol Police officers there, courageously protecting us and returning fire, I don’t know how many of us would still be here. Many of my good friends were injured today. Please pray for those who were shot, and their families.”

Watch: Rep. Don Beyer Answers Questions After Shooting

Staffers for GOP Rep. Claudia Tenney of New York told The Hill that a threatening email Wednesday with the subject line, “One down, 216 to go…,” was sent to her soon after the shooting. The anonymous writer said, "Did you NOT expect this?"

"When you take away ordinary peoples very lives in order to pay off the wealthiest among us, your own lives are forfeit. Certainly, your souls and morality were lost long before. Good riddance,” the email said.

Who Is Congressional Shooter?

Sen. Bernie Sanders said on the Senate floor that he had learned Hodgkinson volunteered for his 2016 presidential campaign.

“I am sickened by this despicable act, and let me be as clear as I can be: Violence of any kind is unacceptable in our society, and I condemn this action in the strongest possible terms," Sanders said. "Real change can only come about through non-violent action, and anything else runs counter to our most deeply held American values.”

Hodgkinson's Facebook page — its banner image was a photo of Sanders — listed various anti-GOP groups before it was removed. Groups included on his Facebook page included "Terminate the Republican Party," "Boycott the Republican Party" and "Illinois Berners United to Resist Trump."

• SEE ALSO: Virginia Congressional Shooting: Illinois Home Inspector Identified As Shooter
• Who Is James T. Hodgkinson? Illinois Home Inspector ID'd As GOP Congressional Shooter

The Republican congressman who represented the district Hodgkinson lived in also received 14 emails and telephone calls from the accused shooter, criticizing policies. Rep. Mike Bost told The Washington Post his staff initiated a correspondence search after law enforcement identified Hodgkinson and contacted his office.

Slater said at a Wednesday evening press conference that Hodgkinson reportedly lived in his car on East Monroe Avenue in Alexandria. "Law enforcement has reason to believe the suspect has been in Alexandria, Virginia since March of this year," Slater said.

Lawmakers Describe Shooting Scene

Flake had just taken batting practice when he heard the first shot ring out from near the third base dugout. "All of a sudden, we heard a shot, a very loud shot," Flake told reporters. "Then boom, a rapid succession after that. He had a rifle of some type, and it was a obviously large-gauge rifle."

Flake estimated that more than 50 shots were fired, according to a statement from his office. The senator helped treat the staffer who had managed to make it into the dugout. Once medical personnel arrived, Flake grabbed Scalise's phone and called Scalise's wife to let her know what had happened so she didn't hear it first from the media.

Ryan said that “we are all horrified by this dreadful attack on our friend and colleagues and those who preserve and protect this capitol. … We are united in our shock, we are united in anguish. An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us.” His remarks earned several standing ovations from members of the House.

While all House members feel deeply about issues, “for all the noise and all the fury, we are one family. These were our brothers and sisters in the line of fire,” Ryan said.

He urged everyone to slow down, reflect and “lift each other up to show the country, to show the world, that we are one House.”

The stadium where the shootings took place is a little more than 7 miles from the White House.

A witness, David Woodruff, who lives in Alexandria and used to work for members of Congress, told Patch he saw the GOP ball team practicing then ran when he heard multiple shots fired.

"I came back out, saw two members of Congress I worked with, asked if they needed anything, if I could be of any help," Woodruff said. "They were clearly distraught and very shaken up."

FBI spokesman Tim Slater would not address any possible motive for the attack. The Washington Post was among the news outlets that named Hodgkinson as the shooter. Hodgkinson was charged in 2006 with battery and aiding damage to a motor vehicle, but the charges were dismissed, records show.

Hodgkinson lived in a St. Louis suburb, Patch reports. On his Facebook page, Hodgkinson lists himself as the former owner of JTH Inspections and JTH Construction and says that he studied at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and studied flight training at Southwestern Illinois College. A reporter at KMOV in St. Louis reported that Hodgkinson is survived by his wife.

"They are in good condition," Verderosa said, "and we look for a rapid recovery."

Alexandria Police Chief Michael Brown said five people were taken to area hospitals for treatment. He said the city was safe. "This is an isolated incident," Brown said at a press conference before 11 a.m.

Scalise, of Louisiana, the No. 3 ranking Republican in the House, was taken by helicopter from the scene. "Prior to entering surgery, the Whip was in good spirits and spoke to his wife by phone. He is grateful for the brave actions of U.S. Capitol Police, first responders, and colleagues," the statement said.

Because there was an assault on a federal official, authorities said the FBI was taking over the active investigation. On Thursday afternoon, the FBI and Alexandria Police said the weapons believed to be used in the shooting were a 9 mm handgun and a 7.62 caliber rifle purchased by a federally-licensed seller. FBI has also recovered a cell phone, a computer and a camera from the suspect's car, parked at the nearby YMCA. The FBI's Springfield and St. Louis Evidence Response Teams are searching the suspect's home in Belleville. Individuals with information on Hodgkinson are asked to call 1-800-CALL-FBI and select option 1.

Scalise, a second baseman for Team GOP, and members of his protective detail were shot by a man described by witnesses as a white man in his 50s. Witnesses have estimated at least 50 rounds were fired from what authorities described as an M4 assault weapon and said the suspect also carried a handgun as he moved from the outfield to the infield firing.

Rep. Rand Paul told CBS This Morning that 30 to 40 people were on the ball field when the shots began. People hid in the dugouts and behind vehicles in the parking lot. "I can't say enough about the Capitol Hill Police, without them it would have been a massacre," Paul said.

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe thanked first responders for their "heroic efforts," saying: "...they saved a lot of lives today."

After he was shot, Scalise collapsed and then used his elbows to crawl into the outfield, Paul said, but because of the continuing gunfire nobody could reach him. Until the suspect was non-fatally shot by police on the scene, it was almost 10 minutes before others on the scene could help Scalise.

"People in the dugouts were seeing the bullets careening off the dirt," Paul said. "We just didn't have a chance without the Capitol Hill Police there."

Rep. Mo Brooks, a Republican from Alabama, who was at the ballpark but not hit, described Scalise's shooting. "He'd crawled into the outfield but leaving a trail of blood. We started giving him some liquids," Brooks said on CNN.

Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia said in a statement on the attack: “I am praying for Representative Scalise and all hurt in the outrageous attack this morning in Alexandria. Thank you to the Capitol Police, Alexandria Police, first responders and everyone helping those harmed.”

The White House press pool reports that security has increased there, and Lafayette Park is closed to visitors.

Alexandria City Public Schools were temporarily on lockdown, which was lifted at 8:50 a.m.

Barton told reporters that his 10-year-old son, Jack, dove under an SUV to hide from the shooter.

At the time of the shooting, lawmakers had been in the midst of practicing for the Congressional Baseball Game, an annual charity event that pits Democrats and Republicans against one another. It is set to take place on Thursday, June 15, at Nationals Park.

Since 1909, Senate and House members have played a baseball game as a fundraiser for D.C.-area charities, including The Washington Literacy Center, The Boys and Girls Club of Greater Washington and the Washington Nationals Dream Foundation.

Virginia is an "open carry" state that allows weapons to be carried in public. The state earned a "Gold Star" status by gun rights advocates given that people in that state are able to openly carry weapons with or without a concealed handgun permit.

Pictured, police and emergency personnel are seen near the scene where House Majority Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana was shot during a Congressional baseball practice in Alexandria on Wednesday, June 14. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen). Also, in a photo from Tuesday, June 13, Steve, joined by Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., far right, and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., comments on health care for veterans during a news conference at Republican National Committee Headquarters on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite); photo of shooter James Hodgkinson via Facebook.com screenshot

Includes reporting by Patch Editors Emily Leayman and Deb Belt