On July 13, 2024, former President Donald Trump narrowly escaped an assassination attempt at a political rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. This event, held at the Butler Farm Show fairground, was one of Trump's last public appearances before the Republican National Convention. The rally took place on a stage surrounded by bleachers, with most attendees gathered on a lawn. The fairground is bordered by a small lake on one side and buildings on the other.
Trump took the stage shortly after 6 p.m. ET. At 6:11 p.m. ET, a gunshot rang out, causing Trump to flinch and grab his right ear. He and the audience ducked as Secret Service agents rushed the stage. The crowd reacted to at least seven more shots fired by the gunman. About a minute after the gunfire began, Trump reappeared, saying, "Let me get my shoes" as Secret Service agents formed a protective ring around him. Thirteen seconds later, Trump raised his fist to the crowd, who responded with cheers. As he was ushered off the stage, his MAGA cap in hand, the onlookers chanted, “USA!” Trump paused briefly to pump his fist before stepping off the stage. Just before getting into an SUV, and two minutes after the assassination attempt began, Trump raised his fist once more and turned briefly toward the crowd. As the car pulled away, heavily armed security forces in khaki fatigues moved onto the scene.
In this article, I would like to summarize the entire incident: who was killed, who was the shooter and most importantly, was this all STAGED by former President Donald Trump?
Was anyone killed?
Corey Comperatore, the only person killed during the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania rally, was a former fire chief. He spent his final moments diving in front of his family to shield them from the gunfire. Comperatore's quick decision to protect his wife and daughter reflected the bravery and selflessness known to his close friends and neighbors. The 50-year-old Butler County resident and proud Trump supporter was remembered as a “man of conviction.”
According to Pennsylvania State Police, two people besides Comperatore were critically injured in the incident. David Dutch, 57, from New Kensington, Pennsylvania, and James Copenhaver, 74, from Moon Township, Pennsylvania, are now in stable condition, as stated in a police press release.
Who was the shooter/killer?
The shooter was identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, a kitchen worker from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, about 70 km (43 miles) from the site of the attempted assassination. According to the BBC, Crooks worked in a local nursing home kitchen. He graduated from Bethel Park High School in 2022, earning a $500 prize for math and science, as reported by a local newspaper. US media stated that he was a registered Republican according to state voter records. However, he donated $15 to the liberal campaign group ActBlue on President Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day in 2021.
Crooks had been a member of the Clairton Sportsmen's Club, a local shooting club, for at least a year. Law enforcement officials believe that the weapon used in the attack, a semi-automatic AR-15 rifle, was purchased by Crooks' father. Investigators report that Crooks opened fire on Donald Trump while the former president was addressing the crowd in Butler, Pennsylvania, resulting in one death and two injuries.
Officials said Crooks was shot dead at the scene by a Secret Service sniper. According to the FBI, Thomas Crooks was not carrying any identification, so investigators used facial recognition technology and DNA to identify him.
Was the assassination attempt FAKE/STAGED?
Immediately after the assassination attempt, some people believed that this was all STAGED by former president Donald Trump to gain popularity and garner votes in the upcoming election in November 2024. One such person who shares this belief is a retired professional fighter. Ever since the assassination attempt, he and many others have shared many posts that attempt to show that the assassination attempt was FAKE.
Personally, I believe in freedom of speech and that everyone including the retired professional fighter (and many others) has the right to express their opinion just as I have the right to do so. My opinion is that this wasn't STAGED and it was REAL. First of all, staging an assassination attempt would be an incredibly risky and complex undertaking. It would require coordinating dozens of people to play roles, from the shooter to the victims to the emergency responders. The chances of such a large-scale ruse being exposed are extremely high. It's far more plausible that this was a real attack carried out by a single deranged individual.
Next, Thomas Crooks, the shooter, died at the scene from a gunshot wound. If we assume that Crooks was an actor hired by Donald Trump for a staged event, it seems unlikely that he would have taken on the role. Why? Because his reward would have been to let the Secret Service kill him—essentially a suicide mission. What could he possibly gain if the outcome was his death? If it was a staged event, wouldn't it be better if he was taken into custody alive? Crooks' assassination attempt on the former president seems to indicate that he was committed to the attack and did not expect to survive.
My final point is that it seems highly unlikely Trump would hire a shooter to aim specifically at his ear and expect an accurate hit. The ear is only inches from the brain, making it an extremely risky target. Precision is difficult, and the shooter could easily make a mistake and hit the head instead, killing Trump instantly. If this were a staged event, Trump would have to be completely out of his mind to entrust his life to such a shooter. I doubt even a SUKMA-level or heck Olympic gold medalist-level shooter could hit that target accurately and this is speaking from my years of experience handling firearms (specifically Glock 44 and Smith and Wesson M&P15-22).
Aaron Colt is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact Newswav.
