Gunman Opens Fire On Congressional Baseball Practice; Five Wounded

<p>Multiple people were injured in a shooting in Alexandria, Virginia, Wednesday morning.&nbsp;The&nbsp;shooting happened in the dugout at field used for congressional baseball practice.&nbsp;</p>

Wednesday, June 14th 2017, 8:09 am

By: News On 6


Multiple people were injured in a shooting in Alexandria, Virginia, Wednesday morning. A gunman opened fire at a park used for Congressional baseball practice. 

Representative Steve Scalise from Louisiana's 1st Congressional district was among five people shot at the baseball field in Alexandria, Virginia. Scalise, the House Majority Whip, was shot in the hip.

The shooting took place just after 7 a.m. at a practice for a bipartisan Congressional baseball game. Scalise was shot on the field at second base and crawled into the dugout, witnesses said.

He is said to be stable at a local hospital and is undergoing surgery. His congressional aide and two Capitol Police officers on his security team were also hit, according to reports. 

Senator Jeff Flake (R-Arizona) said it was a single gunman, but they couldn't tell if he was targeting specific people or not. He said one of the armed police officers took the gunman down despite being wounded.

A female police officer was also shot, Senator Flake said, and one person was shot in the chest.

Texas Representative Rogers Williams was at the practice but was not wounded. He said a member of his staff was shot.

One of the congressmen who was at the practice is a doctor and was able to render aide at the scene. Texas Representative Joe Barton's 10-year-old son was at the scene. Barton said his son took cover under an SUV.

The gunman was heavily armed with an assault weapon and a handgun, witnesses said. Flake said the shooter was at third base where he had a good view of everyone on the field.

Senator Rand Paul said if not for the Capitol police officers, it would have been much worse. Representative Joe Barton agreed: "I think the security detail save a lot of lives," he said. "They attacked the shooter.

Alexandria Police Chief Michael Brown said his officers were on scene within three minutes.

“Two of our officers engaged in gunfire -- return fire,” he said.

Alexandria Police said the suspect is in custody, and the threat has been contained. The gunman was also shot and is in serious condition.

Representative Mo Brooks was at the baseball game and said 50-plus shots were fired. He was not wounded.

Flake said some of the Capitol police officers exchanged fire with the gunman, and he thought 50 shots was an understatement. He believed the incident took place over about 10 minutes.

Republican team members were practicing before the charity game which has taken place for 16 years, Flake said.

Witness Benjamin Childers said people were "running off the field" moments after the shooting in Alexandria, Virginia.

Park Police spokeswoman Anna Rose tells CBS News they used one of their Eagle helicopters to Medevac injured, but that Alexandria Police Department is handling the incident.

Oklahoma Senators James Lankford and Jim Inhofe were not involved in the shooting. We've confirmed Representatives Jim Bridenstine, Markwayne Mullin, Frank Lucas and Tom Cole were also not involved. We are still checking on Representative Steve Russell.

Oklahoma lawmakers quickly took to social media in response to the incident. Senator James Lankford said:

Representative Markwayne Mullin also asked the public to join him in praying for those injured in the shooting. He said he is safe as are his family and staff. 

Tom Cole, Representative from the fourth district in Oklahoma, said:

President Donald Trump issued the following statement:

The Vice President and I are aware of the shooting incident in Virginia and are monitoring developments closely. We are deeply saddened by this tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers are with the members of Congress, their staffs, Capitol Police, first responders, and all others affected.

He tweeted:

Representative Mo Brooks was at the baseball game and said 50-plus shots were fired. He was not wounded.

Flake said some of the Capitol police officers exchanged fire with the gunman, and he thought 50 shots was an understatement. He believed the incident took place over about 10 minutes.

Republican team members were practicing before the charity game which has taken place for 16 years, Flake said.

Witness Benjamin Childers said people were "running off the field" moments after the shooting in Alexandria, Virginia.

Park Police spokeswoman Anna Rose tells CBS News they used one of their Eagle helicopters to Medevac injured, but that Alexandria Police Department is handling the incident.

Oklahoma Senators James Lankford and Jim Inhofe were not involved in the shooting. We've confirmed Representatives Jim Bridenstine, Markwayne Mullin, Frank Lucas and Tom Cole were also not involved. We are still checking on Representative Steve Russell.

Oklahoma lawmakers quickly took to social media in response to the incident. Senator James Lankford said:

Please join me in praying for @SteveScalise, congressional staffers & Capitol Hill police that were shot in Alexandria. This is so terrible.

— Sen. James Lankford (@SenatorLankford) June 14, 2017

Representative Markwayne Mullin also asked the public to join him in praying for those injured in the shooting. He said he is safe as are his family and staff. 

Tom Cole, Representative from the fourth district in Oklahoma, said:

My prayers are with @SteveScalise, the staff, Capitol Police, and all those affected by this morning's incident.

— Rep. Tom Cole (@TomColeOK04) June 14, 2017

President Donald Trump issued the following statement:

The Vice President and I are aware of the shooting incident in Virginia and are monitoring developments closely. We are deeply saddened by this tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers are with the members of Congress, their staffs, Capitol Police, first responders, and all others affected.

He tweeted:

Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, a true friend and patriot, was badly injured but will fully recover. Our thoughts and prayers are with him.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 14, 2017

","published":"2017-06-14T13:09:50.000Z","updated":"2017-06-14T15:12:21.000Z","summary":"

Multiple people were injured in a shooting in Alexandria, Virginia, Wednesday morning. The shooting happened in the dugout at field used for congressional baseball practice. 

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