By The Associated Press and Gabrielle Beechert
6:44 p. m. on July 13, 2024 CDT – Updated at 5:40 p. m. July 14, 2024 CDT
Americans and countries around the world struggled to come to terms with Saturday’s shooting at a crusade rally by former President Donald Trump, which drew crowds, left one dead and Trump bloodied. The shooting is being investigated as an attempted homicide and an act of domestic violence. terrorism.
The FBI said Sunday it has not yet decided on a motive but has identified the shooter, who was shot and killed by Secret Service agents as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
The firm believes Crooks acted alone, but the lack of a clear ideological rationale has added to deepening questions about the shooting and prevented the country from drawing swift and transparent conclusions about one of the most serious crimes and shocking moments in United States history.
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Trump, in a post on his social media platform, called for unity and resilience before heading to Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention, which begins Monday. President Joe Biden addressed the country in the afternoon and evening, imploring the deeply divided United States to “Calm down” and “resolve our differences at the ballot box,” within 4 months.
Here’s what we know:
Trump held his final rally Saturday ahead of the Republican National Convention that begins Monday in Milwaukee.
It displayed a table of border crossing numbers shortly after 6:10 p. m. m. , when the first pop was played, according to the video of the demonstration.
As it played, Trump said, “Oh,” then put his hand to his right ear and looked at it, before temporarily crouching on the floor with his lectern. People in the stands also ducked as shouts echoed through the crowd.
Someone may be heard near the microphone saying, “Duck, duck, duck, duck!”while the officials went to the scene. They piled on top of the former president to protect him with their bodies, as is their educational protocol, while other agents took up positions on the level to scan for the threat.
Screams were heard among the crowd of several thousand people. One woman screamed louder than the others. Voices were then heard saying “the shooter is down” repeatedly, before someone asked “are we able to move?” and “Are we clear?” Then someone ordered: “Let’s go. “
When he was handed over, surrounded by secret service agents, he noticed that he extended his right hand to his face, whose right side was bleeding.
Journalists covering the demonstration heard five or six shots and many hid under tables. After the first two or three shots, other people in the crowd seemed surprised, but not scared. An AP reporter at the scene reported that the noise came first. They sounded like firecrackers or, in all likelihood, car firecrackers.
After getting up, Trump touched her face and smelled blood. He then raised his fist in the air and appeared to utter the word “fight” twice in front of the crowd of his supporters, prompting loud cheers and then chants of “United. ” United States. “USA UNITED STATES. “
His security guards put Trump into a van. His caravan left the place a few moments later. The video shows Trump turning toward the crowd and raising his fist just before being put into a vehicle.
It took two minutes from the moment of the first shot before Trump was placed in a waiting van.
Trump later said on social media: “I immediately knew something was happening, to the point I heard a whistle, gunshots and immediately felt the bullet rip through the skin,” he wrote on his social media site. of bleeding. ” Law enforcement officials have not proven that Trump was shot.
Trump was treated at a local hospital in Pennsylvania and then boarded his personal plane to New Jersey, landing shortly thereafter at Newark Liberty International Airport. A video posted by an aide showed the former president disembarking from his personal plane flanked by the United States Secret Service. Agents and heavily armed members of the agency’s counterattack team, an unusually visual show of strength by its coverage team. Spend Saturday night at your personal golf club.
Members of the Secret Service counter-sniper team and counter-assault team were present at the demonstration, according to two law enforcement officials. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the main points of the investigation.
The heavily armed counterattack team, codenamed “Hawkeye”, is tasked with getting rid of the threats so other agents can and will take away the user they are attacking. The sniper counterattack team, codenamed “Hercules”, uses long-range binoculars and is armed with sniper rifles to deal with long-range threats.
When the shots rang out, Trump ducked and Secret Service agents rushed toward him. Then more shots were heard.
In the video, officers can be heard saying “are you ready? Now move,” while a law enforcement officer wearing protective gear and holding a long gun stood guard in front of the lectern.
State police said the Secret Service was tasked with investigating where the rally took place. When asked if there was anything about the location that made it difficult for him to safety, Lt. Col. Bivens referred the matter to the Secret Service, which did not speak at the news conference.
An Associated Press investigation of more than a dozen videos and photographs taken at Trump’s rally, as well as satellite photographs of the venue, showed the gunman was able to approach the scene where the former president was speaking. A video posted on social media and geotagged via AP showed the body of a guy dressed in gray camouflage, motionless on the roof of a production plant just north of the Butler Farm Show grounds, where Trump’s rally was held.
The ceiling was about 490 feet (150 meters) from where Trump was speaking, a distance at which a smart sniper could simply hit a human-sized target. For reference, 150 yards is a distance that U. S. Army recruits will have to reach in a human-sized silhouette to qualify for fundamental M16 attack rifle training. The AR-15, like the shooter at the Trump rally, is the semi-automatic civilian edition of the military M16.
FBI Special Agent in Charge Kevin Rojek said it was “amazing” that the shooter was able to get a level shot before dying.
Shortly before the gunfire erupted, protesters spotted a man on the roof of a nearby building and alerted local police, according to two law enforcement officials.
A local police officer went up to the roof and encountered Crooks, who pointed his rifle at the officer. The officer retreated to the back of the staircase and Crooks temporarily fired in Trump’s direction, which is when Secret Service snipers shot him, officials said. , who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.
Requests for investigation have come from everywhere. Biden on Sunday afternoon that he had ordered that the investigation into the shooting be “thorough and swift. ”
Authorities have identified Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the gunman who fired from a rooftop outside the protest site in Butler before being killed by the Secret Service.
As of Sunday afternoon, no known motive had been decided or revealed to the public. The political leanings of the criminals were not immediately clear.
Records show Crooks registered as a Republican voter in Pennsylvania, but federal campaign financial reports also show he donated $15 to a progressive political action committee on Jan. 20, 2021, the day President Joe Biden took office. oath. any criminal history.
His father, Matthew Crooks, told CNN on Saturday night that he sought to perceive “what’s going on” but only talked about his son after speaking with authorities.
Crooks will graduate from Bethel Park High School in 2022. In a video of the school’s graduation rite posted online, Crooks can be seen walking across the level to obtain his diploma, looking thin and wearing glasses.
Jason Kohler, who said he attended the same high school but didn’t share any categories with Crooks, said Crooks bullied at school and sat alone at lunchtime. Other scholars laughed at him for the way he dressed, such as his hunting suits, Kohler said.
“He harassed almost every day,” Kohler told reporters. “He’s just an outcast, and you know what kids are like in those days. “
The Secret Service said one bystander was killed and two others were seriously injured. They were all grown men.
The spectator who killed Corey Comperatore, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro announced Sunday. Comperatore, a former fire leader on the domain who enjoyed his family, Shapiro said.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Comperatore’s family described how he temporarily acted before his family when the shooting began.
“He was a hero to his daughters. His spouse and daughters have experienced the unthinkable and unimaginable. My little brother just turned 50 and still has a long way to go. Hate has no limits and love has no limits. Pray for my sister’s in-laws, nieces, mother, sister, me and your nieces and nephews, because it sounds like a terrible nightmare, but we know this is our painful reality,” Dawn Comperatore Schafer, Corey’s sister, wrote on Facebook, according to the Post-Gazette.
Speaking on Facebook, Corey Comperatore’s daughter, Allyson, described her father as “a real-life superhero” who died while watching her and her mother as gunfire erupted at the demonstration.
Pennsylvania State Police know of two other men who were shot: David Dutch, 57, of New Kensington, and James Copenhaver, 74, of Moon Township. Both men were hospitalized and are in good condition, state police said.
U. S. Rep. Ronny Jackson said Saturday that his nephew was wounded. In an interview on Fox News, the Republican from Amarillo described how a bullet grazed the neck of his nephew, whom he did not identify, while he was sitting “in the line of fire” in a segment to the former president at his rally.
President Joe Biden condemned the shooting at a brief news conference Saturday night.
“There is no position in the United States for this type of violence,” he said. “That’s crazy. “
On Sunday, Biden called on the country to “come together as one nation” and said he had ordered an independent security review of preparations for the attack.
“Unity is the most elusive goal of all,” he said, while urging citizens to try.
He said Sunday afternoon that he had ordered the investigation to be “thorough and expeditious” and called on the country to “make assumptions” about the author’s motives or affiliations.
Biden said he asked the United States Secret Service to review all security measures for the Republican National Convention, which begins Monday in Milwaukee.
Vice President Kamala Harris said Saturday night: “Doug and I are relieved that he is not seriously injured. We are praying for him, his circle of family and all those who were injured and affected by this senseless shooting. . . We will have “Let us all condemn this heinous act and do our part to ensure it does not lead to more violence. “
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott posted on social media to “PRAY FOR TRUMP” and Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. , said in a statement that “all Americans are grateful that President Trump is doing well after a despicable attack against a nation not a violent country. “rally. “
“I’m relieved that former President Trump is safe,” Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson said on social media. “But I am deeply saddened by reports of the death of a rally player. This heinous and despicable violence has no place in our nation.
Colin Allred, the Democratic candidate challenging U. S. Sen. Ted Cruz, said on social media that “violence of any kind has no place in our democracy. “
Nikki Haley, former Republican governor of South Carolina and ambassador to the United Nations and Trump’s main enemy, said, “This horrifies any freedom-loving American” and “violence against presidential candidates will never have to be normalized. “
World leaders expressed and condemned the attack.
Democratic U. S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts said, “Political violence is wrong, and I condemn it. I hope everyone who attended the rally is doing well and I’m glad the former president is safe and sound.
U. S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. , a former House speaker, said, “As someone whose circle of family members has been victims of political violence, I know firsthand that political violence of any kind has no place in our country. society. I thank God that former President Trump is safe. As we are briefed on more main points about this horrific incident, let us pray that everyone present at the former president’s rally today will be unharmed.
The Associated Press
Gabrielle Beechert, editor. Gabrielle is a breaking news intern at the Dallas Morning News. Originally from New York, she graduated in 2024 from the University of Notre Dame, where she majored in neuroscience and journalism.
Like everyone else tonight, I am shocked by the attempted assassination of President Trump, for him and for our country. Our prayers for the circle of family of the Trump supporter he killed and for all those injured. My text to the president tonight: at the slightest turn of the head in a simple. . . pic. twitter. com/i35dBC2ucM