DOJ drops key claim from criminal complaint against Cole Allen
The Department of Justice removed a key claim from its legal filings regarding the White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting, contradicting its initial probable cause affidavit.
The original weekend affidavit stated Secret Service Officer V.G. was shot in the chest and protected by a ballistic vest when Cole Allen allegedly fired at security checkpoint. However, Wednesday's memorandum supporting pretrial detention omitted any mention of the officer being shot, instead describing only that Allen fired a shotgun in the direction of the ballroom stairs and that an officer responded with five shots.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche declined to confirm whether Allen shot the officer during a press conference, claiming ballistics analysis was ongoing.
Initial media reports indicated the officer was hit in the chest, with the vest preventing serious injury. The discrepancy raises questions about the accuracy of early accounts and the government's evolving narrative of the incident.
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After failing to brokerage peace with Iran, Trump meets with China empty handed
President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing for a high-stakes summit this week.
Despite the event being viewed as a potential turning point for ending the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran, reports Axios, Trump arrives without a negotiated agreement after months of failed diplomatic efforts.
The Trump administration has pursued an Iran deal since early April but rejected Tehran's counterproposal Sunday, describing it as "unacceptable."
The situation was further complicated Monday when Iranian Ambassador Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli announced Iran's readiness to support a Chinese-proposed four-point peace plan focused on establishing security and development in the Persian Gulf region, according to an automatic translation of their post on X.
The Chinese government has not publicly disclosed details of the proposal, reports The Wall Street Journal.
Iran's endorsement of China's plan, rather than Trump's, creates significant complications for the Beijing summit discussions.
Journalist Charbel Antoun wrote for The Hill, Trump enters negotiations with weakened leverage having failed to broker a deal before the meeting.
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