Omar Gonzalez
Omar Gonzalez, the Texas man whose successful incursion into the White House has placed the Secret Service on the hot seat, was indicted this week on charges stemming from the incident.
According to prosecutors with the National Security Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, at about 7:19 p.m. Sept. 19, Gonzalez climbed over the north fence of the White House, went through the north doors and made it to the executive mansion’s East Room. When apprehended by Secret Service personnel and searched, a black folding knife with a serrated 3 ½ -inch blade was discovered in his right front pants pocket.
And, when the 42-year-old’s vehicle was located on Constitution Avenue NW and searched, agents discovered a battery of weapons, including hundreds of rounds of ammunition, both in boxes and in magazines, two hatchets, and a machete.
In the three-count indictment, Gonzalez was charged with unlawfully entering a restricted building or grounds, while carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon. In addition to that federal offense, he was also levied with two charges alleging violations of District of Columbia law: carrying a dangerous weapon outside a home or place of business, and unlawful possession of ammunition.
The federal charge carries a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison. The D.C. charge of carrying a dangerous weapon carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison, and the charge of unlawful possession of ammunition carries a potential maximum of a year of incarceration.
Gonzalez is one of 16 individuals over the last five years, including six this year alone, who were apprehended by the Secret Service after jumping the White House.
President Obama has expressed concern about the recent security breach, but also remained consistent in his support for the Secret Service.
U.S. Secret Service Director Julia Pierson
“He was obviously concerned about this situation as a parent and as a father who is raising two young women here in this building,” said White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest in a Sept. 30 press briefing.
“But that said, the president does continue to have confidence in the men and women of the Secret Service to perform their very difficult task with professionalism and with the kind of dedication that you would expect.”
On Oct. 1, however, Secret Service Director Julia Pierson resigned amid “accumulating” reports of Secret Service lapses.
The previous day, just hours after Pierson offered testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on the Sept. 19 incident, news broke that the agency had improperly screened and allowed an armed contract security guard to ride in an elevator with Obama—in violation of protocol—during a visit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta two weeks ago.
The White House learned of the elevator incident “just minutes” before it was published in the press, Earnest said on Oct. 1, and it was part of the reason the president accepted Pierson’s resignation.
“Over the last several days we’ve seen recent and accumulating reports raising questions about the performance of the agency, and the president concluded that new leadership of that agency was required,” Earnest told reporters.