The Making of the President 2024: The Attempted Assassination of Donald Trump
On aturday July 13, 2024, Donald Trump was the presumptive Republican nominee for President and was anticipating the start of the Republican National Convention the following Monday. The possibility of attending a function where someone might have violent intentions towards the former President was not unknown to him. At one of his rallies outside of Las Vegas in 2016, a man had attempted to grab a security officer's gun, but the man was apprehended before anything more serious could occur.
On July 3, 2024, it was announced that Trump would hold a rally on July 13 at the Butler Farm Show Grounds in near Butler, Pennsylvania. On July 10, an advance team began setting up for the rally, which was part of the Trump campaign's effort to win votes in the important swing state of Pennsylvania. David McCormack, the Republican nominee for the US Senate was invited to appear onstage with Trump during the rally. The FBI had no information about any particular threats before the event, but the US Secret Service had increased Trump's security detail in earlier weeks because of intelligence indicating that Iran was plotting Trump's assassination. Iran's acting Minister of Foreign Affairs denied the claim, but declared Trump a war criminal for ordering the assassination of Qasem Soleimani.
Attendees at Trump rallies are screened for prohibited items, including weapons and it is standard practice for the US Secret Service to routinely screen and monitors nearby buildings and businesses, including structures outside security perimeters. The event's outer area was patrolled by state police, and an inner perimeter by Secret Service agents. Four separate counter-sniper teams were assigned to the event, two from the Secret Service and two from local law enforcement.
On July 7, 2024, Thomas Matthew Crooks visited the Butler Farm Show grounds, where he spent 20 minutes and registered to attend the rally. On July 12, Crooks went to a shooting range and practiced with his rifle, an AR-15 rifle produced by DPMS Panther Arms. It had a 16-inch barrel. Crooks had bought the gun from his father.
On July 13, the day of the assassination attempt, Crooks bought a five-foot ladder and then he drove to the site of the rally in the morning. A team of Beaver County SWAT officers, tasked with supporting the Secret Service, had taken its position at the security perimeter by mid-morning. Crooks left the rally site and bought 50 rounds of ammunition from a gun store, before driving back to the rally at 3:35 p.m EDT, armed with his rifle and with an explosive device in the trunk of his car. Because he was outside of the Secret Service perimeter, Crooks did not undergo security screening, as he had been outside the Secret Service's security perimeter for the rally. Around 3:50 p.m., Crooks flew a drone for about 11 minutes, showing the scene behind his eventual firing position.
At 4:26 p.m., a local law enforcement countersniper ended his shift and spotted Crooks around the southernmost warehouse of a complex owned by AGR International. Police countersnipers were positioned at the warehouse. The countersniper text-messaged his colleagues about Crooks, noting that he may know about the police presence inside the building. At 5:14 p.m., one of the countersnipers still in the building saw Crooks directly underneath the warehouse and photographed him. The countersniper saw him "scoping out" the rooftop of the building and carrying a golf rangefinder. The countersniper text-messaged images of Crooks to other members of law enforcement before heading outside to find him and keep visual contact while backup arrived. Crooks ran from his position and evaded a search joined by four other local police officers. Law enforcement officers spotted Crooks between 20 minutes and 30 minutes before the shooting. The Secret Service was informed of this at some point.
President Trump arrived onstage at about 6:03 p.m. and at 6:05 p.m., he began speaking. At 6:06 p.m., Crooks scaled an air-conditioning unit between the northernmost AGR International buildings to reach the roof of the complex. He did not use his ladder. He walked across a series of interconnected roofs to reach his eventual firing position on the southernmost roof, which was between 400 and 450 feet north of the venue stage. Inside the building were three police snipers tasked with covering the rally, but, because of a shortage of personnel, none of them were on the roof. Several bystanders witnessed a person on the roof carrying a rifle and alerted the police about him minutes before shots were fired at Trump.
The slant of the roof that Crooks had been on prevented Secret Service snipers from seeing him as he crawled into a firing position. The northern sniper team's view of Crooks's position was blocked by trees.
At 6:08 p.m., a local law enforcement officer reported over radio, "Someone's on the roof." At least four Pennsylvania law enforcement officers focused on the roof Crooks was on and its immediate surroundings, attempting to reach Crooks. Hoisted by another officer, a Butler Township police officer attempted to climb to the roof of the building. Crooks spotted the officer while the officer's hands were clinging to the edge of the roof and aimed his rifle at the officer, at which point the officer let go, falling 8 feet to the ground and severely injuring his ankle. This occurred about 40 seconds before Crooks opened fire.
A few minutes into Trump's speech, starting at 6:11:33 p.m., Crooks fired eight shots into the rally. He struck Trump in the ear and also struck three rallygoers, one fatally. Crooks was killed seconds later by a sniper from the Secret Service. As the shots were heard, rally attendees yelled "Duck!" A total of two shots were fired towards Crooks. The first shot was fired by a member of Butler County's Emergency Services Unit six seconds after Crooks had started firing at Trump and it struck Crooks's rifle stock, which fragmented into debris that hit his face, neck, and right shoulder. Located on a building behind Trump's left shoulder, a team of Secret Service countersnipers were facing in a different direction and reoriented toward Crooks to aim the second shot at him. A member of that team then fatally shot Crooks 16 seconds after Crooks had begun firing.
The upper part of Trump's right ear was grazed by the first bullet fired by Crooks. Trump raised a hand to his ear before dropping down on his podium behind the lectern for cover. Secret Service agents shielded Trump and after the assailant was declared "down", agents helped Trump get up. Blood was visible on his ear and face. He asked the Secret Service agents to let him get his shoes. According to Trump, the agents "hit me so hard that my shoes fell off, and my shoes are tight." They also offered to put him on a stretcher, but he declined. As he was walked off stage, Trump told the Secret Service agents to wait and then raised his fist, pumped it at the crowd, and mouthed the words "Fight! Fight! Fight!" The crowd responded with cheers and chants of "U-S-A!" Trump was then escorted to a vehicle and taken to the nearby Butler Memorial Hospital.
Trump credited a large chart displaying immigration statistics with saving his life. He said that, immediately before the first shot, he turned his head to his right, toward the chart, and pointed to it. The movement narrowed the profile of Trump's skull toward the direction of the shooter, possibly saving him from a direct gunshot wound to his skull. Trump later said, "If I hadn't pointed at that chart and turned my head to look at it, that bullet would have hit me right in the head."
Corey Comperatore. a 50 year old engineer from Sarver, Pennsylvania, was killed by one of the bullets fired by Crooks. Comperatore was the former chief of the Buffalo Township volunteer fire brigade. He died while shielding his wife and two daughters from gunfire. In addition to Trump, a number of other people were injured. Two men, aged 57 and 74, were shot and seriously wounded, but both victims were listed as being in stable condition the following day. The 57-year-old victim was discharged from the hospital on July 24. The 74-year-old was discharged on July 26.
On July 14, the FBI identified the shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks from nearby Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, about an hour away from the rally venue. Crooks is believed to have acted alone. The rifle Crooks used had been legally bought by his father in 2013, who sold it to Crooks in October 2023. Crooks had no criminal record. The FBI said that there had been "no indication of any mental health issues" regarding Crooks.
Crooks worked as a dietary aide in the kitchen of a nearby nursing home. Most neighbors also described Crooks as quiet and as a "normal person." He was a registered Republican. Federal campaign finance records show that on January 20, 2021, when he was 17, Crooks donated $15 to a voter turnout group, the Progressive Turnout Project, through a platform called ActBlue, used by Democrats and progressive organizations.
Shortly after his arrival at hospital, a Secret Service spokesperson confirmed that Trump was safe. Trump's motorcade left the hospital at around 9:30 p.m. EDT bound for Pittsburgh International Airport so that Trump could fly to Newark.
Approximately 2 hours after arriving at the hospital, Trump released a statement on his own social media platform Truth Social in which he said:
"I want to thank The United States Secret Service, and all of Law Enforcement, for their rapid response on the shooting that just took place in Butler, Pennsylvania. Most importantly, I want to extend my condolences to the family of the person at the Rally who was killed, and also to the family of another person that was badly injured. It is incredible that such an act can take place in our Country. Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead. I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear. I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!"
Trump attended the Republican National Convention (RNC) on July 15 with a bandage covering his entire right ear. The Trump campaign organized a GoFundMe fundraising campaign for the rally goers who were wounded or killed, raising over $2 million by July 14. Comperatore's firefighting uniform was brought on stage during Trump's speech at the RNC. Trump kissed Comperatore's helmet. Comperatore's funeral was held the next day on July 19.