Shocking details are emerging about Donald Trump’s deadly July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Police witnesses, many of whom were present at the demonstration during the shooting, are detailing chilling aspects of the disorderly day during a public hearing.
That includes the exact moment when 20-year-old shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks was killed by a sniper just seconds after shooting the former president.
Officials expressed remorse for the death and carnage that occurred that day, and for the failures in preparation and communication with the U.S. Secret Service that led to it.
In addition, the long-awaited results of a series of tests carried out during Crooks’ autopsy have finally been published.
Major Edward Lenz of the Butler County Emergency Services Unit, Patrolman Drew Blasko of the Butler Township Police Department, Lieutenant John D. Herold of the Pennsylvania State Police and Patrick Sullivan attend a House Task Force hearing on the attempted assassination of Donald J. Trump
Opening the hearing, Trump Assassination Task Force Chairman Mike Kelly, a Pennsylvania Republican, said the Secret Service’s lack of communication led to confusion.
He compared it to a situation where the agency was playing telephone during the crisis.
Kelly told witnesses he wanted to clear up the tragic events of July 13 and allowed them to begin.
Mr. Edward Lenz, Sergeant of the Adams Township Police Department, Commander of the Butler County Emergency Services Unit (ESU), opened the hearing with his testimony.
He was in charge of a large 44-member Emergency Service Unit that closely assisted the Secret Service, more officers than the agency required.
His wife, a medical professional, even helped some of the injured that day, he added.
Lenz testified that at no time during preparation was the local ESU asked to secure the AGR complex from which Thomas Matthew Crooks fired.
They were not asked to put anyone on the roof either.
However, they had a sniper in the barn near Trump.
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surrounded by U.S. Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa.
He described how that sniper shot Crooks six seconds after the initial shots rang out against the former president.
That ESU sniper under his command shot Crooks from 110 yards, he testified.
“When the shots were heard, he was able to quickly identify where they were coming from,” Lenz told the panel.
‘He observed the shooter, shouldered his rifle, aimed at the target and fired one shot at the shooter which caused him to recoil and briefly fall out of sight.’
That individual saw through his scope Crooks recoil after firing, indicating that the 20-year-old was hit by the bullet, or at least frightened.
Lenz testified that the ESU shooter was “very confident” that the shot had hit its target.
But seconds after Crooks disappeared following the initial volley, the 20-year-old reappeared and was immediately shot again, this time fatally by the Secret Service.
Lenz said there was “no guidance” from the Secret Service on where he should place his ESU operators.
Lenz said the agency also failed to provide them with information about the rules of participation.
Lenz talked about how his team of ESU operators received little direction from the Secret Service about where officers should be stationed.
And Crooks’ body showed signs that the Secret Service sniper’s bullet was the one that killed the shooter.
Allegheny County Medical Examiner Dr. Ariel Goldschmidt, who performed the autopsy on Thomas Matthew Crooks, confirmed Thursday that he was killed by the sniper.
Goldschmidt confirmed that gunshot residue samples were taken.
He determined that Crooks died as a result of a high-velocity gunshot wound to the head after performing an autopsy on the morning of July 14.
The entry wound was just above Crooks’ lip, he testified.
Then, on July 22, his body was released to the funeral home by order of the county coroner.
Goldschmidt also revealed that before examining the body, it was X-rayed and manipulated by the FBI.
The medical examiner also said he does not believe Crooks’ body was hit by a ninth or 10th shot when pressed by Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., on whether there were additional injuries discovered during the autopsy.
Higgins previously released an independent report indicating that the butt of Crooks’ gun may have been hit by the gunfire and the resulting shrapnel from the impact could have injured the shooter.
Pennsylvania State Police Lt. John D. Herold, the officer in charge of the State Police on July 13, also testified.
During the hearing, he said there were 20 members of his team there to support the Secret Service and that his agency provided everything the agency requested.
He also said his team was not tasked with securing the AGR building from which Crooks shot the former president.
Pennsylvania State Police Lt. John Herold attends a House Task Force hearing on the attempted assassination of Donald J. Trump
The panel also played never-before-seen footage of local police officers attempting to confront Crooks before the shooting.
The video shows footage taken by a police vehicle’s dashcam showing an officer attempting to climb onto the roof.
The officer then frantically jumps from the roof of the AGR building.
He appears to injure his ankle and limps away quickly, apparently frightened.
It was previously reported that an officer spotted Crooks on the roof and tried to approach him before the 20-year-old opened fire, and video confirmed the account.
