WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump has issued a proclamation honoring West Virginia Army National Guard Specialist Sarah Beckstrom who died last week after being shot while patrolling the streets of Washington, D.C.
The proclamation orders U.S. flags to half-staff and the White House and “upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, December 4, 2025.”
The proclamation is also in effect at U.S. embassies and other U.S. facilities around the globe.
Beckstrom, 20, a Webster County native, died on Thanksgiving Day, a day after the shooting.
The entire proclamation:
HONORING THE MEMORY OF SPECIALIST SARAH BECKSTROM, WEST VIRGINIA ARMY NATIONAL GUARD
___________________________________________________________
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
As a mark of respect for the memory of Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, West Virginia Army National Guard, by the authority vested in me as President of the United States by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby order that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, December 4, 2025. I also direct that the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the same length of time at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
fourth day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fiftieth.
DONALD J. TRUMP
Today, President Trump ordered that flags across the nation be flown at half-staff in recognition of SPC Sarah Beckstrom. I want to thank him for this heartfelt gesture. It means a great deal to Sarah’s family, to the West Virginia National Guard community, and to so many across…
— Governor Patrick Morrisey (@wvgovernor) December 4, 2025
U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito says there’s still a different feel on Capitol Hill over a week since the shooting.
“There’s certainly a lot of sorrow still and a lot of shock in a way and respect for Sarah Beckstrom and Andy Wolfe and praying for Andy’s recovery,” Capito said on MetroNews Midday.
She says she spoke with some of the Guard members Thursday during a private service for Beckstrom in Washington D.C.
“I think it’s pretty somber. A lot of people who were in her platoon, her friends, her leaders had such wonderful things to say. There was not a dry eye there,” she said.
Capito says she knows this is especially tough on Beckstrom’s fellow guardsmen.
“I think they’re doing alright, but this is quite a blow and pretty hard to take for a small unit from a small state who cares quite a bit about our country,” Capito said.
Capito told listeners Thursday that she had a brief conversation with Beckstrom’s family, who are hurting badly this week.
“They’re just rocked as any parents would be,” Capito said.