Secret Service Vehicles Hit and Kill Pedestrian

WASHINGTON — Two armored Secret Service vehicles, a Chevrolet Suburban and a limousine that belong to Vice President Biden's fleet, hit and killed a pedestrian just over the D.C. border in Maryland. The accident happened in the early hours of Wednesday morning as the vehicles were being returned from Andrews Air Force Base to a secure storage location. No dignitaries were on board.

The man was crossing at an intersection on Maryland's Suitland Parkway under rainy conditions at 2:27 a.m., the Washington Post reported.

The limousine and Suburban had been used on the vice president's visit to Fort Lewis in Washington State, where he attended and spoke at a memorial service for seven soldiers based there who were killed in Afghanistan. Following the service, as is customary, the vehicles were flown back to Andrews. The vehicles are both armored and therefore must be driven by specially trained employees who have taken a "protective operator's driving course," the Post reported. The paper quoted Secret Service spokesman as saying the armor protection makes them "trickier to handle than ordinary vehicles."

U.S. Park Police are currently investigating the accident.

Inside Line says: Tragic story that appears to be an unfortunate accident. — Laura Sky Brown, Correspondent