Shooter Fired 70 Rounds at Lawmakers' Baseball Practice

James Hodgkinson had chosen Eugene Simpson Stadium Park in Alexandria as his target up to two months before the shooting that injured five people during a Congressional baseball practice in June and had "cased the field" for weeks prior, the Washington Post reports. A 41-page report released Friday by Alexandria Commonwealth's Attorney Bryan Porter adds new details on the Virginia shooting. The report states Hodgkinson used his phone to take pictures of the field in April. And at least one member of the Republican baseball team targeted in the June 14 shooting remembers Hodgkinson sitting in the stands and watching them practice the day before, according to Politico.

The report also includes details on the actual shooting, which lasted for nine minutes. The AP reports Hodgkinson fired at least 70 rounds—62 from an assault rifle and eight from a handgun. In response, police fired at least 40 rounds. Two shots fired by Alexandria police officer Alexander Jensen hit Hodkinson in addition to a shot fired by David Bailey, a member of Rep. Steve Scalise's security detail. Bailey in particular was credited in the report as having "helped avert disaster" by running onto the field while Hodgkinson was firing. The purpose of the report was to determine if officers' killing of Hodgkinson was "legally justified," which it was found to be. "Not only were the actions of the agents and officers reasonable, they were obligatory in light of the overwhelming and determined force employed by the suspect," the report states. (More Alexandria shooting stories.)