West Virginia posthumously honored Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, with its highest military award for her death in a 2025 White House shooting while on National Guard duty.

West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey posthumously awarded the state’s highest military honor, the Distinguished Service Medal, to Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom on March 15, 2026, recognizing her death in November 2025 during a shooting near the White House while on a National Guard security detail in Washington, D.C. Beckstrom, 20, served with the 863rd Military Police Company and died from wounds sustained in the attack. Her fellow service member, Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, survived and received the Purple Heart at President Trump’s 2026 State of the Union address. The suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national, was arrested and faces multiple charges including first-degree murder and assault with intent to kill.