Gunman targets Christian group

WASHINGTON — A man suspected of shooting and wounding a security guard at the headquarters of a Christian lobbying group on Wednesday made a negative reference about the organization’s work before opening fire, a law enforcement official said.

Police said the man entered the front lobby of the Family Research Council in Washington around 10:45 a.m. Wednesday, began arguing with a security guard and then shot him in the arm. The gunman was subdued by the guard and others and taken into custody but had not been charged as of Wednesday evening.

The suspect was identified as Floyd Corkins II, 28, of Herndon, Va. Corkins had been volunteering recently at a community center for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

The Family Research Council opposes gay marriage and abortion and advocates “faith, family and freedom in public policy and public opinion.”

A senior law enforcement official said the had Chick-fil-A “materials” and ammunition in his backpack. Gay-rights groups have called for a boycott of Chick-f il-A because its chief executive took a public stance against gay marriage, and the Family Research Council has supported Chick-fil-A. ing of insecticide in the city in more than 45 years.

Dallas and other North Texas cities have agreed to the rare use of aerial spraying from planes to combat the nation’s worst outbreak of West Nile virus so far this year.

Dallas last had aerial spraying in 1966, when more than a dozen deaths were blamed on encephalitis.

More than 200 cases of West Nile and 10 deaths linked to the virus have been reported across Dallas County, where officials authorized aerial spraying last week. State health department statistics show 381 cases and 16 deaths related to West Nile statewide.