Unarmed Man Arrested On White House Grounds

An unarmed Maryland man described by authorities as mentally unstable was arrested on the White House grounds Friday after he climbed the fence in plain view of security officers and sightseers, the Secret Service said.

In what one law enforcement official called an apparent “cry for attention,” Andrew M. Jopling, 24, scaled the fence about 9:40 a.m., becoming the second intruder arrested there in three days. Unlike an incident Tuesday night, in which a Virginia man carrying an unloaded handgun was shot and wounded as he scuffled with a security officer, Friday’s incursion ended peacefully.

Jopling entered the grounds near the East Executive Avenue visitors’ entrance, 30 yards from the East Wing, authorities said. They said he was non-threatening and did not struggle with officers who saw him on the fence, which stands six feet high on a base of less than two feet, and arrested him when he touched ground.