WASHINGTON (CNN) — Rep. Steve Scalise was shot Wednesday morning in Alexandria, Virginia, a House colleague told CNN, in what sources are calling an apparent “deliberate attack.”
A suspect identified in the shooting is 66-year-old James T. Hodgkinson from Belleville, Illinois, according to a report by ABC News. His wife reportedly said he had been living in Alexandria, Virginia for the last couple of months.
ABC reported that Hodgkinson was allegedly shot and wounded, according to police in Alexandria.
Rep. Mo Brooks told CNN he was on deck at a practice for the congressional baseball team when the shooting occurred. Scalise, a member of the House Republican leadership as the majority whip, appeared to have been shot in the hip and it appeared two Capitol Hill police agents were shot, Brooks added.
According to both congressional and law enforcement sources, the shooting appears to be a “deliberate attack.” Alexandria police said earlier Wednesday they were responding to a “multiple shooting” in the city. The tweet also said the suspect is in custody “and not a threat.” CNN has reached out to Capitol Hill police for details.
Brooks said there were a number of congressmen and congressional staffers lying on the ground, and at least one of them was wounded. The Alabama Republican said he used his belt as a tourniquet to help one of the victims.
He said the shooter appeared to be a white male but added that “I saw him for a second or two.” He said the shooter was behind the third base dugout and didn’t say anything.
“The gun was a semiautomatic,” Brooks said. “It continued to fire at different people. You can imagine, all the people on the field scatter.”
Scalise is the first member of Congress to be shot since former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords was shot in January 2011. Giffords was shot in the head by Jared Lee Loughner at a “Congress On Your Corner” event at a Tucson grocery store. Giffords, who authorities said was the main target of the shooting, survived the attack but six others were killed and an additional 12 were injured.
Loughner pleaded guilty in 2012 and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
