‘I don’t expect forgiveness’: Authorities review writings of California teacher suspected of shooting

CNN

By Kristen Holmes, Casey Tolan, Alayna Treene, John Miller, Holmes Lybrand, Kyung Lah, CNN

(CNN) — The day after a man opened fire at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, authorities are combing through a message sent by the shooting suspect, seeking to understand what allegedly led him from his life as a respected California teacher to a would-be assassin.

“Let me start off by apologizing to everyone whose trust I abused,” reads a note that authorities say was sent by the suspect, Cole Tomas Allen, a 31-year-old from Torrance, California, who worked part-time as a teacher and also developed video games, according to public records.

The note, which Allen allegedly sent to family members before the attack, said he intended to target administration officials and expressed his political anger, while noting, “I don’t expect forgiveness.”

Allen had a tendency to make radical statements as he became involved in left-wing activism in Los Angeles, acquired firearms and began regularly practicing at a firing range, his sister told law enforcement, according to the White House.

In recent days, authorities said, that talk turned into action. He boarded a train in Los Angeles and traveled to Chicago and then DC, where he checked into the downtown hotel hosting the annual dinner featuring President Donald Trump and including other top administration officials.

He came armed with a .38-caliber semi-automatic pistol and a 12-gauge shotgun, authorities told CNN. And then he allegedly sent family members a written statement calling himself the “Friendly Federal Assassin” and expressing anti-Trump sentiments before trying to storm past security outside the dinner Saturday night.

The suspect “got off a couple shots” and hit one Secret Service agent wearing a bulletproof vest before he was quickly apprehended, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told CNN, as Trump and other leaders scrambled for safety inside the nearby ballroom.

Now, authorities are reviewing the statement Cole allegedly sent and his social media history – which Trump has described as “anti-Christian” – speaking to family members and seeking to learn more about what drove him to allegedly carry out the violent attack.

“We’re still looking to try to understand a motive. From our preliminary investigation, it does appear the suspect was targeting members of the administration,” Blanche said.

The note laid out a number of grievances in broad terms that could point authorities toward that motive, including anger toward conditions in detention camps and appearing to refer to Trump as a “traitor.”

The suspect in the attack is being charged with two counts of using a firearm and one count of assault on a federal officer using a dangerous weapon, according to the US Attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, who did not name him publicly. Blanche said the suspect is not cooperating with authorities.

Allen attended the California Institute of Technology from 2013-2017, according to his LinkedIn profile, where he participated in the school’s Christian Fellowship organization and its Nerf Club. Facebook photos from 2016 also show Allen at Christian Fellowship events at the school.

As a student, Allen was also featured in a local news report in 2017 for developing a prototype emergency brake for wheelchairs.

He graduated in 2017 with a mechanical engineering degree, according to his LinkedIn profile, and was featured in a CalTech graduation announcement posted by the university that included a picture of him as an adult wearing a cardigan and a photo of him as a beaming young child holding a stuffed bunny.

After graduating, he found work as a part-time teacher at C2 Education, a test prep and tutoring company. C2 named Allen the company’s “teacher of the month” in December 2024, according to social media posts from the company. No one answered a phone number for C2 late Saturday evening.

He also said he worked as a video game developer, and published an indie game called Bohrdom for sale on the Steam gaming platform for $1.99. He registered a trademark for the game’s name in 2018, according to federal trademark records.

The game is described on Steam as a “skill-based, non-violent asymmetrical fighting game loosely derived from a chemistry model that is itself loosely based on reality.”

On LinkedIn, Allen wrote that he was “currently developing a second game, working name ‘First Law.’”

Allen became involved in political activism in recent years, his sister, who lives in Rockville, Maryland, told authorities, according to the White House, including by joining “The Wide Awakes,” a leftist group whose name is a callback to the anti-slavery protesters in the 1860s who worked to get Abraham Lincoln elected president.

Allen donated $25 to Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign in October 2024, according to Federal Election Commission records.

Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives found records indicating that on October 6, 2023, Allen purchased a .38-caliber semi-automatic pistol from a store in southern California. On August 17, 2025, Allen bought a 12-gauge shotgun from another gun store in his hometown of Torrance.

The guns were purchased legally and in both cases required Allen to submit his information for a background check through the FBI to determine that he was not wanted, subject to a restraining order, or a convicted felon.

After making his train journey from Los Angeles to DC, Blanche said, the suspect checked into the Washington Hilton, which hosts the annual correspondents’ dinner.

On Saturday evening, the White House said, he sent family members his writings that “clearly stated he wanted to target administration officials.”

The note apologized to his parents, colleagues and students, and said that he didn’t intend to specifically target law enforcement – though added, “I would still go through most everyone here to get to the targets if it were absolutely necessary.”

In the message, the suspect argued his attack didn’t clash with Christian values, writing, “Turning the other cheek when *someone else* is oppressed is not Christian behavior; it is complicity in the oppressor’s crimes.”

The note closed with a note of anger: “I experience rage thinking about everything this administration has done.”

After receiving the message, his brother contacted the New London Police Department in Connecticut to express his concern, and other family members reached out to police agencies.

Inside the hotel, the suspect charged through a security checkpoint outside the ballroom. The Secret Service agent hit in the attack was treated and released from the hospital, authorities said.

In the aftermath, law enforcement began working to piece together Allen’s movements and possible motives; Secret Service agents and Montgomery County Police interviewed the suspect’s sister in Rockville, the White House said, and FBI agents assembled outside a home linked to Allen in Torrance, a Los Angeles suburb.

Police tape was put up along part of the street and a spotlight was shone on the home. A number of reporters were gathered at the scene and news helicopters were hovering overhead.

A next-door neighbor, who did not wish to be identified, told CNN he was not sure if Allen lived at the property. They said they did not see him often, but he was there “a couple of days ago.” The neighbor said the suspected gunman’s father is friendly and chatty, adding that they spoke frequently.

This story has been updated with additional details.

CNN’s Curt Devine, Scott Glover and Majlie de Puy Kamp contributed reporting.

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