Crime
46-year-old building manager James Stuart killed in shooting at VIDA Fitness gym in Washington Logan Circle neighborhood
Washington, D.C. police have released additional details about a deadly shooting near Logan Circle that left one person dead and four others injured.
Interim Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Chief Jeffery Carroll confirmed that the victim killed in the incident was identified as 46-year-old James Stuart, a building manager from Northwest Washington, D.C.
According to police, the shooting began inside VIDA Fitness, where the suspect allegedly shot Stuart with a handgun. The gunman then returned to his nearby apartment, located on the seventh floor of a building, and opened fire with a rifle from his private balcony or patio, striking four people below near Church Street, 15th Street and a nearby alley.
Two women and two men were wounded in the street shooting. One victim remains in critical condition, while the other three are expected to survive.
MPD and federal law enforcement officers responded within minutes, possibly seconds, of the initial reports. Witnesses and nearby residents helped investigators quickly identify the suspect’s apartment, allowing officers to locate the source of the gunfire.
Police said the suspect fired through the apartment door at members of MPD’s Emergency Response Team on two separate occasions. He subsequently damaged a gas line, intentionally started a fire inside the apartment and turned the gun on himself. Officers later forced their way into the apartment and found him dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Authorities identified the suspect as 55-year-old Matt Wade Lambert, who lived in Northwest Washington, D.C.
Investigators recovered three firearms inside the apartment: a rifle, a shotgun and a handgun. Police believe the suspect used all three weapons during the incident, and preliminary findings indicate that at least some level of planning may have been involved.
According to information provided by police, the suspected motive may have been connected to an ongoing dispute between Lambert and his condominium homeowners association (HOA) management. The disagreement reportedly involved building maintenance and mold issues, along with a lawsuit Lambert had filed. During negotiations with police, much of the conversation reportedly centered on his dispute with the HOA.
Authorities also confirmed that Lambert did not have any firearms registered to him in Washington, D.C. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is investigating how and when he obtained the three weapons.
Police said they have not identified any known connection between Lambert and the four people shot outside the building.
The investigation remains ongoing as authorities work to establish the complete circumstances, timeline and motive behind the deadly shooting.
WASHINGTON, D.C. โ Dr. Matt Lambert, MD, has been identified in reports as the suspected gunman in Thursday morning’s deadly shooting near Logan Circle in Northwest Washington, D.C.
The suspect died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after barricading himself inside an apartment and engaging in a standoff with police, according to authorities.
The shooting occurred shortly before 8 a.m. at a gym in the 1500 block of 15th Street NW. Police officers arrived approximately 30 seconds after receiving the emergency call and found one person suffering from a gunshot wound inside the gym. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
Four additional people were found shot nearby and transported to hospitals. One of those victims was reported to be in critical condition.
Investigators identified the suspected gunman as a white male. After clearing the gym and a nearby apartment building, officers heard gunfire coming from the building’s seventh floor and determined that the suspect had barricaded himself inside an apartment.
Police negotiators communicated with the suspect for more than an hour. During the standoff, officers heard another gunshot. They subsequently forced entry into the apartment and found the suspect with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He later died.
Police believe the suspect lived in the apartment building and was also a member of the gym where the shooting occurred.
Who Was Dr. Matt Lambert?
Following reports identifying Lambert as the suspected gunman, attention has turned to his reported connection to disputes involving the Metropole condominium, located at 1515 15th Street NW in Washington, D.C.
An X account operating under the username @OfMiceandMold had reportedly published posts about alleged building problems, including concerns involving building management and building-code inspections.
Court documents connected to litigation involving the condominium association list Dr. Matt Lambert as a potential witness. His name also appears in professional contact information associated with an office at Unit 704 of the building. That information establishes a reported connection to the property but does not, by itself, establish a motive for the shooting.
Manifesto Referenced Before the Shooting
Reports circulating after the attack reference a manifesto discussing Washington, D.C., building-code inspections, along with an engineering report allegedly shared before the shooting.
The materials have raised questions about whether the suspect’s reported concerns about the building were connected to the violence. However, investigators have not publicly established the full contents of the documents, their precise connection to the suspect, or whether the condominium dispute was the motive for the attack.
Possible Connection to the @OfMiceandMold Account
Questions have also emerged about whether Lambert operated the X account believed to be connected to the suspect.
An individual reviewing two episodes of the Slice of Healthcare program featuring Lambert reportedly noticed artwork and furnishings in the video backgrounds that appeared similar to items visible in images posted by the X account.
That observation is an unverified visual comparison, not confirmation of account ownership. Authorities have not publicly established that Lambert controlled the account.
Investigation Into the Shooting
The attack left one victim dead at the gym, four others injured, and the suspected gunman dead following the standoff. Police have not publicly confirmed a motive or established that the alleged condominium dispute directly caused the shooting.
Investigators are expected to examine the suspect’s background, the reported manifesto, the engineering report, digital material, and any potential connections to the building.
Further official information is needed to clarify the circumstances surrounding the attack.