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The GW Hatchet

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GW lifts shelter-in-place order after homicide suspect escapes custody at GW Hospital

Authorities are still searching for the subject.
GW+lifts+shelter-in-place+order+after+homicide+suspect+escapes+custody+at+GW+Hospital
Courtesy of Taytum Wymer

Updated: Sept. 6, 2023, at 10:25 p.m.

GW lifted the shelter-in-place order for the Foggy Bottom Campus at 8:15 p.m. Wednesday.

In an alert sent to students, officials urged the community to exercise caution as they traverse campus, while Metropolitan Police Department officers continue their manhunt around D.C. As of 8:22 p.m., Metropolitan Police Department officers shut down their Foggy Bottom outpost near the scene, tearing down police tape and exiting in vehicles.

Officials confirmed that MPD had cleared the scene and said officers have not yet apprehended the subject, who is “not believed” to be near Foggy Bottom, in a GW Alert at 10:03 p.m. The alert states that in-person classes and normal Mount Vernon Express operations will resume Thursday, but that buildings will be accessible using GWorld card tap access only. GW Police Department officers will also continue “increased patrols” on campus, per the alert.


You can read the original post here:

Updated: Sept. 6, 2023, at 7:17 p.m.

Officials put the Foggy Bottom Campus under a shelter-in-place order Wednesday after a man charged for homicide escaped police custody at GW Hospital.

Christopher Haynes, a 30-year-old arrested for homicide Wednesday, escaped custody at 3:38 p.m. at the 900 Block of 23rd St. NW, according to a statement by the Metropolitan Police Department. Officials issued a GW Alert at 3:53 p.m., advising community members not to engage with a “dangerous individual” reported at 24th Street and New Hampshire Avenue.

MPD said in a tweet to be on the lookout for “a Black male with shoulder-length dreadlocks, wearing a white suit with one red shoe.” MPD spokesperson Hannah Glasgow said Haynes has a black handcuff on his right wrist. MPD released an updated photo of Haynes at about 7:15 p.m. where he appears to be wearing no shoes.

Courtesy of MPD

Officials issued a campus shelter-in-place order at 4:02 p.m. A Hatchet reporter observed a large police presence on the scene, including multiple MPD units, the Secret Service and K-9 squads. Officers blocked off street corners surrounding the area with caution tape, including the intersections of 24th and I streets, 24th and K streets, and 24th and New Hampshire Avenue.

Officials issued another GW Alert at 4:26 p.m., alerting community members that they have locked GWorld card readers that allow access to campus buildings to people not affiliated with GW. An alert at 5:54 p.m. said the shelter-in-place order was still in effect, canceled all evening events and activities and advised students to check with their professors for “potential virtual requirements.” Students who choose to leave should use “extreme caution” and avoid 23rd Street, according to the alert.

Officials announced that they will relocate the Mount Vernon Express stop on 23rd Street between G and H streets to 20th and E streets in a GW Alert at 6:13 p.m.

Courtesy of Tatum Wymer

“The University is monitoring a situation near its Foggy Bottom campus. We do not have any report of anyone harmed in the GW community,” said a University spokesperson at about 5:25 p.m. “The GW community is asked to continue to shelter in place.”

Secret Service officers are searching cars in Georgetown, according to a tweet from freelance journalist Andrew Leyden.

The Secret Service set up precautionary closures around the White House after Haynes’ escape, according to NBC News.

A Secret Service spokesperson deferred comment to MPD.

A GW Hospital spokesperson was not immediately available for comment.

This story is still developing. Please check back with updates.

Erika Filter, Fiona Bork, Fiona Riley, Nick Pasion and Zach Blackburn contributed reporting.

Clarification:
A prior version of this article named the subject as Christopher Hayes and stated he is 31 years old. He is Christopher Haynes, and is 30 years old. An initial release by MPD misspelled his name and incorrectly stated his age, which was subsequently corrected. We regret these errors.

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About the Contributor
Grace Chinowsky, Senior News Editor
Grace Chinowsky is a junior majoring in journalism and mass communication from Seattle, Washington. She leads the News section as The Hatchet's 2023-2024 senior news editor, and previously served as the assistant news editor for the Metro beat.
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