National Guard Member Shot Breaking Up a D.C. Street Fight

A National Guard member was shot in the leg late Sunday in southeast Washington while trying to break up a street fight, and the suspected shooter was hit in return fire, D.C. police Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll said early Monday. Both men are expected to survive, according to police.

The Associated Press reports the shooting happened at about 11:10 p.m. Sunday in the Eastern Market neighborhood. Carroll said seven or eight Guard members in a parked van were monitoring a fight on the sidewalk. FOX 5 DC reports the Guard members got out of the van to intervene, and that is when the suspect began shooting, according to police.

Carroll said the person ran into an alley and Guard members immediately told him to drop the gun. He said the man instead pointed the weapon at the Guard members, who returned fire, the AP reports. One Guard member was struck in the leg and the suspect was shot in the abdomen. Both were taken to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, Carroll said.

Three Guard members discharged their firearms during the encounter, Carroll said. The suspect was arrested, according to the AP. Fox News reports Carroll described the episode as one in which Guard members were attempting to end the fight when the shooting started.

President Trump deployed the Guard to Washington in August 2025 as part of what he called a crime-fighting mission, the AP reports. The force rose to a peak of about 5,000 troops over the summer and has supported arrest operations, patrolled streets and neighborhoods and taken part in cleanup efforts, according to the AP.

The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the shooting. Carroll said there is no ongoing threat to the community and asked anyone with information to contact police.