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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

White House fence jumper nabbed

Man caught on North Lawn by Secret Service agents

Secret Service respond on the North Lawn after a man jumped the White House fence Wednesday. (Associated Press)
Darlene Superville Associated Press

WASHINGTON – A 23-year-old Maryland man was in custody Wednesday night after he climbed over the White House fence and was swiftly apprehended on the North Lawn by uniformed Secret Service agents and their dogs.

The incident came about a month after a previous White House fence jumper sprinted across the same lawn, past armed uniformed agents and entered the mansion before he was felled in the ceremonial East Room and taken into custody.

That embarrassing Sept. 19 incident preceded the disclosure of other serious Secret Service breaches in security for President Barack Obama and ultimately led to Julia Pierson’s resignation as director of the agency after 18 months on the job.

Secret Service spokesman Brian Leary said a man he identified as Dominic Adesanya of Bel Air, Maryland, climbed the north fence line at about 7:16 p.m. and was taken into custody immediately by uniformed agents and K-9 teams that constantly patrol the grounds. Adesanya was unarmed at the time of his arrest, Leary said. Charges were pending.

Two dogs were taken to a veterinarian for injuries sustained during the incident, Leary added.

Video of the incident recorded by TV news cameras shows a man in white shorts on the lawn just inside the fence. The video shows that man lifting his shirt as if to show that he is unarmed. He is then seen kicking and punching two Secret Service dogs that were released on him.

The man was being taken to a local hospital, Leary said, without elaboration.

This week, a federal judge delayed the arraignment of Omar Gonzalez, the individual charged in September’s fence-jumping incident, because of questions about his mental fitness to stand trial.

Gonzalez has been indicted on several charges, including carrying a knife into the White House and assaulting two Secret Service officers.