Bush was in his limousine ready to leave the arena when the screaming woman hit the same side of the building, near the exit the president's motorcade was to use. Bush was one level below, down a ramp about 75 yards away.

"We don't think there was any malice against the president. ... It was a matter of very bad timing," a DeSoto County Sheriff's Department official, who wished to remain anonymous, said.

Employees of the DeSoto Civic Center said they ran away from the crash, scared that it was an attempted car bombing.

But the Sheriff's Department official said the woman had been awake all night arguing with her husband, was late for the event and grew increasingly frustrated as she was turned away from the building at checkpoint after checkpoint.

"She then took the matter into her own hands," he said.

The sheriff's department charged the woman, Betina Mixon, 29, with aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer.

While Bush was apparently in no direct danger during the security scare, the incident raised questions about how well the president is protected at a time when he is leading a war on terrorism.