Texts and police reports have shown serious security lapses at the Butler, Pennsylvania rally
According to the New York Times, the individual who attempted to assassinate former US President Donald Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, had meticulously planned his attack and successfully evaded security measures.
The shooter opened fire at 6:11pm on that Saturday, narrowly missing Trump’s ear as he turned away. The shooter was later identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, from a nearby town.
Text messages and after-action reports provided to the Times by Senator Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, revealed that local police had observed Crooks for nearly 90 minutes before he fired, but repeatedly lost track of him.
Crooks had visited the fairgrounds in Butler on July 7. The Secret Service arrived a day later, and subsequently decided to exclude the AGR warehouse complex from the security perimeter, according to the Times.
On July 13, the day of the rally, the Secret Service did not attend the 9am security briefing for local law enforcement. By 10am, Crooks had purchased a ladder and driven to the rally site. He remained there for over an hour, observing the local police. He then returned to his hometown, bought 50 rounds of ammunition, and drove back, arriving around 3:35pm, “according to geolocation information from one of his cellphones,” the outlet noted.
The Secret Service did not deploy drones to survey the area, but Crooks did. Around 3:50pm that Saturday, he flew a drone over the site for about 11 minutes, before returning it to his car and resuming his position at nearby picnic tables. It was at this point that a local counter-sniper, finishing his shift, first noticed him. The officer alerted his colleagues at 4:26pm that someone had “snuck in” and “knows you guys are up there.”
No action was taken until 5:14pm, when Crooks was spotted using a range finder. One of the county counter-snipers took a photo of Crooks. It was shared in the local police department’s group chat at 5:38pm, and subsequently relayed to the Secret Service.
One of the two remaining counter-snipers left the AGR building to monitor Crooks until reinforcements arrived, according to Butler County district attorney Richard Goldinger. However, Crooks had already fled, and the sniper returned to his position. Four Butler Township officers were reassigned from traffic control to assist in locating him.
One officer sent a text at 6pm, suggesting that Crooks had moved “away from the event.” In reality, the Times noted, he had climbed onto the roof approximately 120 meters from the stage.
“There is still confusion about which agency was supposed to oversee the roof,” the Times reported. The Secret Service had left it unguarded. Beaver County “struggled to find enough volunteers to cover the 12-hour shift,” according to text messages.
Trump took the stage at 6:03pm. Six minutes later, the rally attendees began pointing towards someone on the warehouse roof. “Either through luck or preparation,” Crooks had located a position that allowed him to take a clear shot at Trump, while remaining “somewhat hidden” from the Secret Service, according to the Times.
At 6:11pm, Crooks fired at Trump. The Secret Service snipers reacted and fatally shot him. At least eight spent cartridges were found next to his body. Police who eventually reached the roof were unable to determine how Crooks had gained access.
Kimberly Cheatle resigned as the Secret Service director ten days later, after initially stating she would not. No individual at the agency was reprimanded, dismissed, or held accountable for the near-fatal incident.