Secret Service begins measuring White House fence for spikes
The Secret Service and National Park Service began measuring the fence in front of the White House for security spikes following several incidents in which people managed to scale the fence in front of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
The work is taking place from approximately 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday. The spikes - or "pointed anti-climb feature," as the Secret Service calls them - are being measured prior to the manufacturing process. They will be installed over about four weeks of work beginning in July.
The spikes are meant as a temporary measure before a longer-term solution is implemented, according to a press release issued by the Secret Service earlier this month.
There have been a number of security breaches around the White House this year. The most high-profile took place in September 2014 when a 42-year-old man named Omar Gonzalez climbed the fence, ran 70 yards across the front lawn of the White House, entered through unlocked doors at the North Portico and made it all the way through the entrance hall, past the staircase leading up to the first family's residence, and into the East Room. Only then was he apprehended by Secret Service agents.
Gonzalez appeared in federal court in October where he was found "not competent" to stand trial after a mental health screening.