The scrutiny facing U.S. Secret Service officials shows no signs of abating following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump last Saturday in Pennsylvania.
Police confirmed that gunman Thomas Crooks, 20, got into position after climbing a ladder and crawling across the roof like a bear. A member of the public alerted local police to his presence. One officer was then hoisted onto the roof with the help of another local police officer.
When he reached the roof, Crooks pointed his gun at the officer, forcing him to duck for cover from the roof. Moments later, shots were heard.
Crooks shot the presumptive Republican nominee from a rooftop about 100 feet from the podium. Trump was shot in the ear, while his supporter Corey Comperatore was tragically killed.
Now, a report from NBC News details that officers in charge of securing the area in the city of Butler in the days leading up to Trump’s appearance identified the rooftop as a security risk.
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said securing the rooftop would have been under the jurisdiction of local police, but there were no officers assigned to it.
A timeline showing the dramatic events that took place on July 13.
Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old would-be assassin who shot Donald Trump, was once shunned by his high school’s gun club and considered a danger.
A member of the public is seen speaking to a police officer before shots rang out, the building where Crooks was is on the right.
Police stand over the body of Donald Trump gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks after he was shot and killed by Secret Service.
Following the shooting, Trump issued a statement thanking the Secret Service for its “quick response” and offering his condolences to Comperatore.
“Someone should have been on the roof or securing the building so no one could get on the roof,” a former Secret Service agent with knowledge of the plans used to secure the rally told NBC.
It is perhaps the worst security failure since President Ronald Reagan was shot and wounded in a Washington hotel in 1981.
Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger has been shifting blame for the shooting to the agency.
“They had meetings the week before. The Secret Service was running the show. They were the ones who designated who did what. In the chain of command, they were at the top, they were number one,” he said.
The former agent who spoke to NBC News said that even if local police “made mistakes,” the ultimate responsibility lies with the Secret Service.
“The fact that it is outside the perimeter does not exclude it from vulnerability, and it must be mitigated in some way,” the agent added.
Trump, who like other former presidents has lifetime protection from the Secret Service, was surrounded by agents who quickly removed him seconds after the shots were heard.
Agents killed the shooter, identified by the FBI as Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, and an AR-15-style semi-automatic pistol was recovered near his body, authorities said.
Trump says he was hit by a bullet above his right ear but is otherwise fine and will travel to the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where he will receive his party’s presidential nomination.
Mike Johnson, speaker of the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives, said the House panels will subpoena officials from the Secret Service, the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI for hearings.
“The American people deserve to know the truth,” Johnson said.
The House oversight panel has called Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to testify on July 22.
The Secret Service, which is charged with protecting current and former presidents, is part of the Department of Homeland Security. The department’s Office of the Inspector General is responsible for overseeing Secret Service operations.
A spokesman for the inspector general’s office did not respond to questions about whether it would launch its own investigation.
As Trump raised his fist toward the crowd, some could be heard cheering his name and chanting “USA” and “Make America Great Again.”
The FBI said in a statement after the shooting that it would be the lead federal law enforcement agency in the investigation into the shooting.
In a statement, Secret Service spokesman Guglielmi said the agency had “added protective resources (and) technology (and) capabilities as part of the increased pace of campaign travel.”
Guglielmi denied allegations that the agency had rejected Trump’s team’s requests for more security resources.
In televised remarks, Biden, 81, said Trump, as a former president and the Republican nominee for president in the Nov. 5 election, already receives a heightened level of security.
“I have been consistent in my direction to the Secret Service to provide you with all necessary resources, capabilities and protective measures to ensure your continued safety,” said Biden, a Democrat.
He said he had “commissioned an independent national security review into yesterday’s demonstration to assess exactly what happened”, the results of which will be shared with the public.
On Sunday, Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres said he and Republican Rep. Mike Lawler plan to introduce a bill that would require increased security for all presidential candidates.
Paul Eckloff, a former Secret Service agent who retired in 2020, said agents would have inspected all rooftops with line of sight beforehand.
Trump is seen surrounded by Secret Service agents moments after the shooting. He raised his fist to indicate he was OK in an image that has since gone viral around the world.
“This person either hid until he became a threat, or he wasn’t a threat until he revealed his weapons,” Eckloff said.
In the moments after Trump was injured, the former president was quickly surrounded by Secret Service personnel who formed a human shield, while heavily armed agents wearing bulletproof vests and carrying rifles also took the stage and appeared to scan the area for threats.
Officers loaded Trump into a black SUV and took him to a local hospital, the campaign said.
Trump supporters criticized the Secret Service for failing to protect the former president. Billionaire Elon Musk called for the agency’s executives to resign.
“How was a sniper in full rifle gear allowed to climb onto the roof closest to a presidential candidate?” conservative activist Jack Posobiec asked on social media.
“There will be an intensive review” of the incident and “a massive realignment will be done,” said Joseph LaSorsa, a former Secret Service agent who served on the presidential team. “This cannot happen.”
During most of Trump’s campaign stops, local police assist the Secret Service in securing the site. Agents from other Department of Homeland Security agencies, such as the Transportation Security Administration, sometimes also assist.
Many Trump rallies draw thousands of spectators, take place outdoors and last for hours.
Before the event, agents scan the site for bombs or other threats, and Trump invariably arrives in a fortified motorcade.
Security officers often set up barriers around the perimeter and require all attendees to pass through a metal detector to enter the premises. Armed security officers check the bags and even wallets of all attendees. Many protesters are patted down with their hands.
