On April 2, 2021, Noah Green, a 25-year-old black nationalist, killed Capitol Police officer William Evans and wounded a second officer after he deliberately rammed his car into a barricade outside the United States Capitol in

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As a result of the attack, the Capitol complex was locked down. Green was shot and later died at a hospital from the gunshot wounds. Green shared extremist viewpoints advanced by the

Nation of Islam The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious and political organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930. A black nationalist organization, the NOI focuses its attention on the African diaspora, especially on African ...

and other black nationalists prior to committing his attack at the Capitol.

Incident

On April 2, Officer Billy Evans was posted at a

checkpoint Checkpoint may refer to: Places * Border checkpoint, a place on the land border between two states where travellers and/or goods are inspected * Security checkpoint, erected and enforced within contiguous areas under military or paramilitary co ...

on Constitution Avenue usually used by senators and staff members on weekdays, about from the entrance of the building on the Senate side. At about 1:00 p.m., a man deliberately crashed a blue

Nissan Altima The Nissan Altima is a mid-size car that has been manufactured by Nissan since 1992. It is a continuation of the Nissan Bluebird line, which began in 1955. The Altima has historically been larger, more powerful, and more luxurious than the Nissa ...

into the barricade. The vehicle struck Evans and another officer; Evans was hospitalized and died from his injuries. After ramming the two officers, the driver exited the vehicle with a knife, lunged at officers, and ignored verbal commands before being shot by police. The perpetrator was arrested, hospitalized and died of his wounds soon afterward. The Capitol was placed on lockdown after the attack and staff were told to

shelter in place Shelter-in-place (SIP; also known as a shelter-in-place warning, SAME code SPW) is the act of seeking safety within the building one already occupies, rather than evacuating the area or seeking a community emergency shelter. The American Red Cro ...

, while members of the National Guard's Immediate Reaction Force mobilized near the checkpoint. The lockdown was lifted later that day.

Victim

William "Billy" Evans was the Capitol Police officer killed during the attack. He served for 18 years with the

United States Capitol Police The United States Capitol Police (USCP) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States with nationwide jurisdiction charged with protecting the United States Congress within the District of Columbia and throughout the United States an ...

, and was a member of the first responder unit. He was the sixth Capitol Police officer to die in the line of duty since the force was created in 1828. He was also the second one to die a few months after the January 2021 siege.

Perpetrator

Early life and education

The assailant was Noah Green, age 25, who was born in Fairlea, West Virginia, into a family with ten children. He grew up in Covington, Virginia, in the southwestern part of the state and graduated from Alleghany High School. In high school, he played football and participated in track and field. He attended Glenville State College before transferring to Christopher Newport University (CNU) in

Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...

, where he was a

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

on the football team.

Years before the attack

People who knew Green described him as athletic and popular in high school and college, but after he graduated from CNU, he became deeply

paranoid Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concer ...

and religious, leaving family and friends concerned that his mental state was unraveling. A U.S. official said Green increasingly suffered

delusion A delusion is a false fixed belief that is not amenable to change in light of conflicting evidence. As a pathology, it is distinct from a belief based on false or incomplete information, confabulation, dogma, illusion, hallucination, or some o ...

s, paranoia, and

suicidal thoughts Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

. Family and friends said Green believed people had drugged him with Xanax, leaving him with addiction and withdrawal symptoms. After moving into an apartment in Newport News, he reported hallucinations, headaches, heart palpitations, and suicidal thoughts. One day, admittedly inspired by drugs, he abruptly abandoned his apartment in Newport News and moved to

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

. While there, he told his brother he believed his apartment was being broken into by intruders. His brother said he appeared to be mentally disturbed. Green also wrote in Facebook posts shortly before the attack that "these past few years have been tough, and these past few months have been tougher" and that he had quit his job "partly due to my afflictions". He posted about the end times and the Antichrist. In a March 15 post, he encouraged "everyone to study Revelations

recte The Latin adverb ''sic'' (; "thus", "just as"; in full: , "thus was it written") inserted after a quoted word or passage indicates that the quoted matter has been transcribed or translated exactly as found in the source text, complete with any e ...

'' Revelation">Book of Revelation">Revelation study the signs of end times, study who the best beast">The_Beast_(Revelation).html" ;"title="'recte'' The Beast (Revelation)">beastis, study who the anti-Christ is, study who the false prophet is, and study the created images during those times." Two days later, he made a post possibly referring to his claim of being drugged by teammates, blaming the drugging for steering him off the "right track". Green became a follower of the

(NOI), a Black nationalist organization, and its leader Louis Farrakhan. On Facebook, he posted messages in support of the NOI, as well as speeches and articles by Farrakhan and his predecessor

Elijah Muhammad Elijah Muhammad (born Elijah Robert Poole; October 7, 1897 – February 25, 1975) was an African American religious leader, black separatist, and self-proclaimed Messenger of Allah, who led the Nation of Islam (NOI) from 1934 until his de ...

. He petitioned to change his name to Noah Zaeem Muhammad in December 2020, but did not attend the name change hearing in Indianapolis, which was held four days before the attack. He also posted a Farrakhan video titled "the crucifixion of

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

" on March 21. In posts the week before the attack, he wrote that he believed Farrakhan had saved him "after the terrible afflictions I have suffered presumably by the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

and

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

, government agencies of the United States of America" and claimed that "I have suffered multiple home break-ins, food poisonings, assaults, unauthorized operations in the hospital, ndmind control." According to his brother, a few months before the attack, Green left Indianapolis and moved to

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...

, where he told his brother that "his mind was telling him to basically commit suicide." He jumped in front of a car, seriously injuring himself, then returned to the U.S., where he moved in with his brother. Two weeks before the attack, Green posted a photo of a "Certificate of Completion" for a $1,085 donation he had made, under the name "NoahX" (in the style of Nation of Islam spokesman

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of ...

), to the Nation of Islam's

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

chapter for Saviours' Day, along with a link to a Farrakhan speech called "The Divine Destruction of America". The night before the attack, he became violently ill and texted his brother, "I'm just going to go and live and be homeless."

Investigation

Investigators believe Green's attack was caused by a combination of his mental health issues and an ideological cause which he believed justified violence. He was not known to police before the attack and had no known connection to a member of Congress.

Response

Acting Capitol Police chief Yogananda Pittman said the attack "has been an extremely difficult time" for her police force, especially in the aftermath of the January6 Capitol attack. Many members of Congress praised the actions of the Capitol Police, the National Guard, and other

first responder A first responder is a person with specialized training who is among the first to arrive and provide assistance or incident resolution at the scene of an emergency, such as an accident, disaster, medical emergency, structure fire, crime, or terr ...

s; and they also offered condolences to the police force and the family of the slain police officer. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi called Evans a "

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

for democracy" and ordered the flags at the Capitol to be lowered to

half-staff Half-mast or half-staff (American English) refers to a flag flying below the summit of a ship mast, a pole on land, or a pole on a building. In many countries this is seen as a symbol of respect, mourning, distress, or, in some cases, a salut ...

in his memory. She offered her condolences and support to Evans' mother and two children. President Joe Biden said he and

First Lady First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarchical A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state fo ...

Jill Biden "were heartbroken to learn of the violent attack"; expressed condolences to Officer Evans' family and other bereaved; and expressed "the nation's gratitude to the Capitol Police, the National Guard Immediate Response Force, and others who quickly responded to this attack". He ordered flags lowered to half-staff at the White House and all public buildings, as a sign of respect for the service and sacrifice of Capitol Police officers. Green's family issued a statement, saying they "were just as taken aback as the rest of the nation from this horrific event" and "feel great sympathy" for the police officers attacked. Green was "not a terrorist by any means", had "depression and potential mental illness", and "hardships with his peers" that began after repeated head trauma from playing football. After the attack, the Nation of Islam distanced itself from Green. The group said that while Green sought to become a member of their organization, he was not a registered member of the Nation of Islam. It appears that in late summer (August–September) of 2020, he started the process to begin his study to become a member, but he did not complete the process. The group said Green's act "violates our teachings" and they "absolutely disavow this act that resulted in the senseless loss of life".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Capitol car attack, April 2021 2021 in Washington, D.C. 2021 murders in the United States African-American history of Washington, D.C. April 2021 crimes in the United States April 2021 events in the United States Attacks on the United States Congress Attacks in the United States in 2021 Crimes against police officers in the United States Crimes in Washington, D.C. Deaths by firearm in Washington, D.C. People shot dead by law enforcement officers in the United States Vehicular rampage in the United States United States Capitol Police African and Black nationalism in the United States Nissan Altima