WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- The man shot Monday by a U.S. Capitol Police officer after he allegedly pointed a gun at another officer at the Capitol Visitor's Center is facing two federal charges.
Larry Dawson of Antioch, Tenn. was charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers or employees with a dangerous weapon and assaulting a federal law enforcement officer with a dangerous weapon. Combined, the two charges carry a maximum sentence of 55 years in prison.
According to charging documents, Dawson pulled out the gun while going through a security checkpoint at the visitor's center.
After a scuffle with an officer, he advanced past the metal detectors and into visitor's center when, according to the documents, he turned around and faced the metal detectors and officers.
During this encounter, officers gave Dawson commands to drop his gun and put his hands in the air, which Dawson ignored, the charging documents say.
Dawson then began advancing towards the officers, pointing his gun at one of them, the documents said. It was at this time that an officer who had gone around the metal detectors and approached Dawson on his left shot the suspect, according to the documents.
After the first shot hit him, the documents say Dawson still had his gun pointed at the officers, prompting the officer to shoot Dawson again.
Once Dawson was apprehended, officers recovered his weapon. It resembled a semi-automatic handgun but, according to the documents, was actually a spring-loaded BB gun.
The incident sent the Capitol complex and White House into lockdown. Panicked visitors at the Capitol ducked behind walls and metal detector equipment while officers dealt with the situation.
