"Everyone get down! Everyone get down!" was the command repeated inside the U.S. Capitol as police gunfire took down a man who pulled a weapon at the security checkpoint leading to the central symbol of the federal government.

From those commands forward, Kai Gudmestad of Minneapolis found himself and his wife and two children in a chaotic scene of other tourists scrambling for cover as security personnel kicked into action Monday with efficiency.

Before the mayhem, Gudmestad said, he and his family were inside the underground Capitol visitors center waiting for their midafternoon tour.

Soon, "off in the distance, there's an argument or a fight," he said. "I was trying to listen for it. The yelling moved from behind the north side of the visitors center to right in front of where everything happened."

Suddenly, there was "a large group of police," he said. "We were in the open. I pulled my family behind a large column and was able to peek back out to see what was going on. I didn't see anything, because everything that was happening was going on" back near the security checkpoint.

Gudmestad said "the amount of emotion [coming from the tourists] was incredible," particularly from a large group of teenagers.

Randy Salas, Star Tribune
Parents Kai and Amy Gudmestad of Minneapolis had a more peaceful time showing their kids, Eli and Lucy, the White House in Washington, D.C., than when they arrived at the U.S. Capitol for their tour Monday.

"They were a mess," Gudmestad said. "My kids [10-year-old Eli and 8-year-old Lucy] didn't calculate it, but they were scared, for sure."

The uniformed officers and other security who responded "did really, really well," Gudmestad said. "They attempted to calm people. Of course, that's difficult."

Capitol police identified the suspect as Larry R. Dawson of Tennessee. Dawson, who remained hospitalized Tuesday in stable but critical condition, was charged with assault with a deadly weapon and assault on a police officer while armed.

In October, the 66-year-old Dawson disrupted a House session by yelling that he was a "Prophet of God." He was issued a "stay away order" by the District of Columbia Superior Court that same month that required him to avoid the Capitol grounds, according to court documents.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482