Three Guard members fired their weapons during the Sunday night confrontation near Eastern Market, and both wounded men are expected to survive.

WASHINGTON, DC — A National Guard member was shot in the leg while intervening in a street fight Sunday night in Washington, D.C., prompting an exchange of gunfire that left the suspected shooter wounded and under arrest, police said.

The confrontation occurred around 11:10 p.m. October 18 in the 400 block of 8th Street SE, near Eastern Market. Both the guardsman and the suspect, who was struck in the abdomen, were hospitalized with injuries authorities described as non-life-threatening.

Fight escalates into gunfire

Interim Metropolitan Police Chief Jeffery Carroll said seven or eight Guard members were sitting in a parked van when they saw a sidewalk fight and stepped out to intervene.

“An individual who had been involved in the fight had pulled out a firearm and began shooting,” Carroll said during an early Monday briefing.

The encounter continued into an alley. Guard members ordered the suspect to drop his weapon, but he fired again, according to Carroll. Three service members discharged their weapons, and investigators had not determined whose gunfire struck the suspect.

Guard members provided first aid after the shooting, with firefighters and emergency medical personnel from a nearby firehouse assisting. Police had not announced the suspect’s name or specific charges.

Investigators seek witnesses

The department’s Internal Affairs and Criminal Investigation divisions are examining the shooting. Carroll said there were “no further threats to the community.”

Investigators want to speak with people involved in the fight and witnesses who left after the gunfire. Anyone with information can call police at 202-727-9099 or submit an anonymous tip by texting 50411.

Earlier attack killed a Guard member

The shooting comes nearly a year after two Guard members were attacked near the Farragut West Metro station on November 26, 2025. Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died the next day. Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe survived.

The defendant in that case, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, has pleaded not guilty to a 17-count indictment.