Last Update July 16, 2024 10:56am ET

The Secret Service is facing heightened scrutiny in the wake of the assassination attempt against former President Trump, in which the shooter was allowed to bring a rifle onto a nearby rooftop in broad daylight. The FBI is investigating the Trump shooting as well as the home of Thomas Matthew Crooks.

Covered by: Chris Pandolfo and Elizabeth Pritchett

Fast Facts:

•  Former President Trump survived an assassination attempt that killed one of his supporters and wounded two others during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, 2024. 
•  The shooter has been identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, and the FBI is investigating his specific motive. 
•  Corey Comperatore, was fatally shot while two other victims, 57-year-old David Dutch of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, and 74-year-old James Copenhaver of Moon Township, Pennsylvania, were both shot and are now in stable condition. 
•  Trump is now in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the Republican National Committee is meeting to formally nominate him for president, with Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, as his running mate. 

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incoming update…

28 min(s) ago

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FBI interviews local officer who saw Trump rally gunman but retreated

The FBI investigation into the attempted assassination of former President Trump is honing in on the response from local law enforcement. 

Sources tell Fox News that FBI agents are interviewing members of local law enforcement, specifically specifically the officer who saw shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks armed, but retreated away from the building. Crooks opened fire literally seconds later, according to law enforcement sources. 

There is great frustration in the law enforcement community over the actions of this officer, sources familiar say.

Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe said in interviews with local media that a county deputy confronted Crooks moments before the shooting but ducked for cover when he peered above the edge of the roof and the killer turned the gun on him.

“The officer had both hands up on the roof to get up onto the roof, [and] never made it because the shooter had turned towards the officer, and rightfully and smartfully, the officer let go,” he told KDKA-TV.

Security outside the Secret Service’s secured perimeter is typically handled by state and local law enforcement. 

Fox News’ David Spunt and Jake Gibson contributed to this update.

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11 min(s) ago

Video shows moment Secret Service agents tossed Trump’s shoes offstage

New video from the assassination attempt on former President Trump’s life shows the moment his shoes came off as Secret Service agents rushed to protect the president. 

In an interview with the New York Post, Trump said his protective detail rushed at him like “linebackers” after shots rang out during his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday.

“They did a fantastic job,” he told the Post. “It’s surreal for all of us.” 

As Secret Service agents rushed Trump off the stage, he was heard saying he wanted to get his shoes.

“The agents hit me so hard that my shoes fell off, and my shoes are tight,” he explained to the Post. 

The video shows one of the agents who surrounded Trump scooping up his shoes and tossing them off stage before the former president was carried to safety. 

Trump was rushed to a hospital after he appeared to suffer an injury to his ear and was pictured with blood on the right side of his face and head as Secret Service agents escorted him off the rally stage.

Fox News Digital’s Greg Norman contributed to this update.

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53 min(s) ago

FBI agents search building from which gunman fired

(Fox News)

FBI agents were seen Tuesday at the American Glass Research complex that gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks used as a sniper’s perch in his assassination attempt on former President Trump.

Fox News Digital reporters witnessed employees being allowed back into the building for the first time since the shooting. A short time after, FBI agents began to arrive. 

Overnight, workers removed the large American flag that hung over Trump as he delivered his remarks to thousands of supporters in Butler, Pennsylvania. 

FBI agents on Monday entered the Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, home of would-be Trump assassin Thomas Crooks.

Federal authorities say Crooks, 20, shot at Trump with an AR-15 while the former president was speaking at his rally in Butler on Saturday evening, but the gunman missed his intended target and hit three other victims — one of whom died.

“The FBI continues to investigate the shooting incident at the July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, as an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump and as potential domestic terrorism.,” the FBI told Fox News’ David Spunt in a statement. “The investigation is still in the early stages and the FBI is providing the following updates: FBI technical specialists successfully gained access to Thomas Matthew Crooks’ phone, and they continue to analyze his electronic devices. The search of the subject’s residence and vehicle are complete.”

The FBI added that it has “conducted nearly 100 interviews of law enforcement personnel, event attendees, and other witnesses,” and the agency’s “work continues.”

Fox News’ Courtney De George and Fox News Digital’s Audrey Conklin contributed to this update.

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1 hour(s) ago

Trump rally speaker who tended to murdered attendee hopes ‘horrific’ event will unite nation

A speaker at President Trump’s Pennsylvania rallywhere he was injured by an attempted assassin’s bullet spoke out Monday after treating the attendee who was fatally shot in the head.

Rico Elmore, a hydraulic mechanic with the Pennsylvania Air National Guard’s 171st Air Refueling Wing, said he was seated in the VIP area of the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally when shots rang out.

Elmore, seated near GOP Senate candidate David McCormick, former House candidate Sean Parnell and Slippery Rock Mayor Jondavid Longo, had recently returned to his seat when he heard what sounded like firecrackers.

“Immediately, myself, Sean Parnell and J.D. Longo, we’re both, because of our military background, we’re like, ‘Something’s going on,’” said Elmore, who is also the Beaver County Republican Committee’s vice chair.

“So, we’re looking around, trying to scour the area, and you hear it again. And then we just start yelling, ‘Everyone get down.’”

Elmore recounted watching Secret Service agents pile atop Trump to shield him, before he noticed a rallygoer calling out for a medic.

Elmore ran over, crossed a barricade and helped treat Corey Comperatore, noticing he had been shot in the head.

While those in attendance proclaimed him a hero, Elmore said the true hero was the doctor who performed CPR on Comperatore, who died from his injuries.

“People perceived that I was somebody of importance. I’m just an average Joe who wanted to be there, went to the event and who spoke at it, but people perceive otherwise. So, I took it on and said, you know, ‘Everyone get down, get down, get down,’” he recounted.

Fox News Digital’s Charles Creitz contributed to this update.

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1 hour(s) ago

Jack Black cancels Tenacious D tour after blowback from bandmate’s dark ‘wish’ after Trump shooting

Kyle Gass (L) and Jack Black of Tenacious D perform at PNC Music Pavilion on September 06, 2023 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jeff Hahne/Getty Images)

“School of Rock” star Jack Black announced Tuesday that his comedy band, Tenacious D, has canceled their current tour after Black’s bandmate made a dark joke about the attempted assassination of former President Trump. 

At a concert on Sunday, Black wished his bandmate and fellow actor Kyle Gass “Happy Birthday” before asking him to “make a wish,” in a video that went viral on social media. Gass replied with, “Don’t miss Trump next time.”

Black said in a statement to DailyMail.com that he was “blindsided” by Gass’ remarks. 

“I was blindsided by what was said at the show on Sunday. I would never condone hate speech or encourage political violence in any form,” Black said. 

“After much reflection, I no longer feel it is appropriate to continue the Tenacious D tour, and all future creative plans are on hold. I am grateful to the fans for their support and understanding.” 

Fox News Digital’s Kristine Parks contributed to this update.

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1 hour(s) ago

Photographer who captured Trump’s reaction to assassination attempt isn’t ready to call it ‘iconic’

Associated Press photographer Evan Vucci snapped this photo of former President Trump in the aftermath of a failed assassination attempt. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The photojournalist who captured the image of former President Trump’s defiant reaction to an assassination attempt Saturday says he was just doing his job and “history will judge whether it is iconic.”

Moments after a bullet grazed Trump’s right ear on Saturday, he raised a fist to the crowd of supporters as he was rushed off the stage with blood smeared across his face, Secret Service flanking him, an American flag flying above his head. Associated Press photographer Evan Vucci captured the image that immediately went viral and landed on newspaper front pages across the world. 

“I was literally just thinking about doing the best possible job I could, because I knew that this was a moment in American history that I had to be at the top of my game for,” Vucci told Fox News Digital on Monday from Milwaukee, where he was preparing to photograph the Republican National Convention. 

Vucci, a Pulitzer winner who has covered thousands of similar events for the AP since 2003, said the Butler, Pennsylvania rally was “just like any other” until he heard popping sounds over his left shoulder. 

“I knew immediately it was gunfire. I trained my lens on the stage, and I saw Secret Service agents going to run to the president, covering him up. And from that moment, I ran to the stage and I got my wide angle lens, and I started making photographs. I went into work mode,” Vucci said. 

“I knew immediately that it was going to be one of the most important things I’ll ever photograph, and that I needed to do the best job possible,” Vucci continued. “So I just immediately started thinking about, ‘OK, what do I need to do? How do I compose this? What’s going to happen next?’”

Vucci switched to a wide angle to ensure the flag flying above got in his shot. He noticed an SUV parked to the side of the stage as Secret Service agents covered Trump and chaos erupted around him. Vucci said he “sprinted” to the side of the stage, assuming it was where Trump would exit, and got in position to snap photos as Trump pumped his fist toward the crowd. 

“That’s where I was when he was coming down… and that’s the photo a lot of people are sharing,” he said. 

The photo hasn’t merely been shared. It has also been praised as both iconic and instantly historic, and it will be on the next print cover of TIME Magazine. it’s also one that could change some people’s perceptions forever of Trump, one of the most controversial, beloved and loathed political figures in American history.

Fox News Digital’s Brian Flood and David Rutz contributed to this update.

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2 hour(s) ago

Last words of ‘hero’ firefighter who died at Trump rally shooting revealed

The volunteer firefighter who died while shielding his family from the sniper who tried to kill former President Trump over the weekend at a rally in Pennsylvania said “get down!” as his final words, his wife has revealed. 

Helen Comperatore told the New York Post that she and her husband Corey were close to celebrating their 29th wedding anniversary when their family headed to the campaign event in Butler, outside of Pittsburgh, on Saturday.  

“He’s my hero,” Helen Comperatore said to the newspaper from her home in nearby Sarver, Pennsylvania. “He just said, ‘get down!’ That was the last thing he said.”

“Me and the kids were all there as a family,” she added. “He was just excited. It was going to be a nice day with the family. 

Corey Comperatore, 50, was the former fire chief for the Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Company. The department now has a memorial set up outside its firehouse featuring Comperatore’s uniform to honor who they described as a “brother, son, husband, father and friend.” 

“He was a simple man, but he put his wife and kids first all the time. I did nothing here. I didn’t lift a finger. He did everything,” Helen Comperatore told the New York Post in the wake of the shooting, which injured Trump and critically injured two other rallygoers who are expected to survive. 

Helen Comperatore also said President Biden tried to call her family following the incident but “I didn’t want to talk to him. 

“I didn’t talk to Biden,” she said. “My husband was a devout Republican and he would not have wanted me to talk to him.” 

“I don’t have any ill-will towards Joe Biden,” Helen Comperatore added. “I’m not one of those people that gets involved in politics. I support Trump, that’s who I’m voting for but I don’t have ill-will towards Biden.” 

Helen Comperatore described the shooter at the rally, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, as a “despicable kid.”