Crime & Safety

Woman Shot Near U.S. Capital ID'd as Stamford Resident

Miriam Carey, 34, of Stamford, is believed to be the registered owner of the black Infinity sedan driven from the White House to Capitol Hill, where the driver tried to ram through barricades.

By Michael Dinan

STAMFORD, Conn.—Deferring to the FBI, Stamford officials late Thursday said they had no further information on the woman shot dead following a high-speed chase from the White House to the U.S. Capitol building. 

Traffic in downtown Stamford early in the evening came to a halt as four helicopters, a national media corps and scores of local, state and federal law enforcement officials swarmed the normally tranquil Woodside Green apartments—a carefully landscaped, higher-end co-op complex across the street from a major shopping area in this city of about 125,000. 

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The woman has been identified as Miriam Carey, a 34-year-old dental hygienist, according to a New Haven Register report citing law enforcement officials.

Carey was unarmed, law enforcement sources have said. All the shots in the incident, which occurred about 2:20 p.m., were fired by police trying to stop her, according to a 4:49 p.m. update on the Washington Post's website

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Carey reportedly led police on a high-speed chase after ramming a gate to the White House, police told Georgetown Patch. There was a child in the car at the time, according to multiple news reports. The child has been transported to a hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to Georgetown Patch. An officer in Washington, D.C., also suffered non-life-threatening injuries during the chase, Patch reports.

Connecticut's Congressional delegation was also safe following the afternoon shooting that put the Capitol in a temporary lockdown.

In a press statement issued late Thursday, Stamford Mayor Michael Pavia said: "A full investigation is underway by federal authorities who are in Stamford currently. Stamford police are assisting federal authorities as needed."

For the latest on this developing story, see Georgetown Patch.

Patch editors Gary Jeanfaivre, David Gurliacci and Corey Fyke contributed to this report.


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