WASHINGTON — House Majority Whip Steve Scalise who was gravely wounded in a shooting at a GOP congressional baseball practice last month was released Tuesday from the D.C. hospital where he had undergone multiple operations over the past six weeks.
Scalise, who suffered a life-threatening gunshot wound, was one of five people shot June 14 at a ball field in Alexandria, Virginia, as Republican members of Congress practiced for a charity game.
Scalise, 51, “has made excellent progress,” MedStar Washington Hospital Center said in a statement Wednesday, and the congressman “is now beginning a period of intensive inpatient rehabilitation. He is in good spirits and is looking forward to his return to work once he completes rehabilitation.”
The No. 3 House Republican underwent several surgeries following the shooting. Along with Scalise, a congressional staffer, a lobbyist for Tyson Foods and two Capitol Police officers were injured in the shooting.
The statement said Scalise and his family are grateful for the care he received from the trauma team. “The family also appreciates the outpouring of prayers and support during this time,” the statement said.
The shooter, 66-year-old James Hodgkinson, was fatally shot during an exchange of gunfire with police. Hogdkinson, an unemployed former home inspector from Belleville, Illinois, had been living out of his van in the Alexandria area since March. He frequently espoused angry anti-Republican views online, although the attack appeared to be more spontaneous than planned, the FBI said.
WTOP’s Colleen Kelleher contributed to this report.
