Doctor confessed to DC gym shooting over apartment dispute, manager says

Gunman killed building manager, then fired at four from balcony

A doctor killed a building manager inside a gym in his Logan Circle condominium building in north-west Washington DC on Thursday morning, then fired at four people from his balcony before barricading himself in his unit, police said. The gunman was identified as 55-year-old Matt Lambert. He was found dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The person killed was identified as James Stuart, 46, a manager at the condominium complex. The building is in the Logan Circle neighborhood of the capital, not far from the White House.

According to police, Lambert fatally shot Stuart inside a gym in his building just before 8am ET. He then returned to his apartment and fired at four people from his balcony. Those victims were taken to hospital, and as of Thursday, one was in critical condition.

Charelle Ferguson, another building manager, said in an interview with the Washington Post that she spoke with Lambert by phone at around 9am that morning, about an hour after the shooting began. Ferguson told the newspaper that she had been calling residents to check on their safety after shots were fired when Lambert answered, and that he told her he was tired of mold and water damage in his apartment.

“The only way people will pay attention, you have to do something,” Ferguson said he told her. She said he then confessed over the phone to shooting the five people.

“I never thought he’d do something like this,” Ferguson told the Post. She also said that he had previously told her about the issues in his unit, and that she had been sympathetic to his concerns.

Court records seen by the Guardian show that Lambert sued his condo association in 2025, alleging it had failed to address water damage, mold and moisture issues in his apartment, which he alleged began after exterior work was carried out on the building. The association denied allegations of negligence and denied responsibility for the damage in court filings, and the litigation remained ongoing.

Lambert’s attorney in the civil matter, Joel Braithwaite, said at a news conference on Thursday that he was “deeply shocked” by what happened and that he had last spoken with his client on Tuesday and said that he had sounded fine.

“I can’t tell you how surprised I am because the person I knew as a client is someone who is in the business of healing people,” Braithwaite said.

On Thursday evening, residents gathered at a vigil in the neighborhood, lighting candles and showing support for those affected by the shooting.