Shots Fired Outside Biden’s Delaware Home Saturday Night

FILE - In this March 21, 2012 file photo, Vice President Joe Biden speaks at Mellon Auditorium in Washington. Biden on Sunday, May 6, 2012 said he's "absolutely comfortable" with gay couples who marry getting the sam... FILE - In this March 21, 2012 file photo, Vice President Joe Biden speaks at Mellon Auditorium in Washington. Biden on Sunday, May 6, 2012 said he's "absolutely comfortable" with gay couples who marry getting the same civil rights and liberties as heterosexual couples, a stand that gay rights advocates interpreted as an endorsement of same-sex marriage. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

This post has been updated.

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Multiple gunshots were fired from a vehicle near the Delaware home of Vice President Joe Biden on Saturday night, the U.S. Secret Service said Sunday. The vice president and his wife were not at home at the time of the shooting, authorities said.

The Wilmington home is several hundred yards from the main road where the shots rang out, and authorities were searching outside the Biden residence and nearby homes to determine whether any rounds hit anything. Police in New Castle County, Delaware, said there were no reports of any injuries related to the shooting.

Secret Service spokesman Robert Hoback said the shots were fired at about 8:25 p.m. on a public road outside the home’s secure perimeter.

Secret Service personnel heard the shots, saw the vehicle drive past the home at a high rate of speed and flee the scene.

The Secret Service said about 30 minutes later, an individual in a vehicle tried to pass a county police officer at a checkpoint set up after the shooting near the Biden home. That person was arrested for resisting arrest and was scheduled to be questioned regarding the shooting incident. County Police Sgt. Jacob Andrews said it appears the man was not involved in the shooting.

Biden’s neighborhood includes stately stone-and-brick homes along a curving two-lane road that winds through rolling hills. Nestled in a heavily wooded area, the vice president’s home is not visible from the main road. A small cottage, occupied by the Secret Service, sits on the property near a gate in front of the driveway that is blocked off by Secret Service vehicles and personnel.

Police said there was a report of shots fired in the nearby area of Hoopes Reservoir, just northwest of the Biden home. The reservoir is a source of fresh water for Wilmington.

Biden’s office said the vice president and his wife, Jill Biden, were briefed Saturday night, as was President Barack Obama. Biden’s office referred all other questions to the Secret Service.

On Sunday afternoon, half a dozen sport utility vehicles were parked near the entrance of the Bidens’ property, providing a heavy security presence in the area. Shortly before 2 p.m., a motorcade of several more SUVs arrived at the house. It was unclear whether the vice president was in any of the vehicles.

Biden planned to speak Monday in Wilmington at the Organization of Minority Women’s 31st Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast.

The Bidens spend many weekends at their Delaware home, and, while he served in the Senate, Biden frequently made a daily commute from Delaware to Washington by train.

___

Thomas reported from Washington.

___

Follow Ken Thomas on Twitter: https://twitter.com/KThomasDC

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Latest News

Notable Replies

  1. I hope Alana Levinson has an alibi.

  2. And that it is something more believable than:
    “I was doing research for an article”

  3. I wonder if the RWNJ blogs are having a blast with this as clickbait?
    “Sorry, officer, I was just following VP Biden’s advice about shooting my shotgun …”

  4. The ultimate snark bait is why are liberals are giving a pass to the bullets fired in Biden’s Delaware neighborhood. Is it because they like his policies?

  5. Bless that our wonderful VP and his family are safe.

    A full investigation must be done … is this home grown sovereign citizen/militia crap aka domestic terrorism? The right wingers will ignore it if is and blame it on Islam blah blah blah something if they can.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

10 more replies

Participants

Avatar for system1 Avatar for rook429 Avatar for sysprog Avatar for dv01 Avatar for leftflank Avatar for randyabraham Avatar for jinx_tpm Avatar for nkd Avatar for stephen_maturin Avatar for richardnixonhuberthumphrey Avatar for ottnott Avatar for martinstett Avatar for tao Avatar for captaincommonsense Avatar for dickweed

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: