On the 2nd, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Inspector General released a report indicating that during a 2024 campaign rally for President Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, the Secret Service failed to receive 102 radio alerts issued by local law enforcement regarding the gunman, resulting in missed critical warnings.
The report states that the Secret Service did not have access to these communications from July 13, 2024, because a joint communications center with local law enforcement agencies had not been established at the time. Police had been continuously sending out radio alerts in their search for a suspicious individual, who was later identified as the shooter, Crooks.
The report noted, “We found that the Secret Service received only 5 phone calls and 3 text messages relating to Crooks,” and as a result, “Secret Service agents did not notify the protective detail responsible for Trump of alerts about the suspicious individual.”
On July 13, Crooks fired at Trump while he was speaking on stage at the rally and was subsequently shot dead by law enforcement. The shooting resulted in the death of one attendee, multiple injuries, and Trump’s right ear was grazed by a bullet.
The investigation revealed that Crooks had ascended to the rooftop of a nearby building, from a position with a direct line of sight to Trump on stage.
The Inspector General made several improvement recommendations in the report, including strengthening information sharing mechanisms and addressing potential“blind spots” in sight lines at event venues before events are held.
Additionally, the report pointed out that hours before the attack, Crooks had operated a drone over the event site without detection because the Secret Service's anti-drone system was not functioning properly at the time.
The Inspector General stated that this anti-drone system was operated by only one insufficiently trained person, and that equipment tests had not been completed before the event began.
The report further noted that the operator spent hours troubleshooting, during which time the suspect conducted a nearly 9-minute drone flight—completely undetected.
This report is the latest among several investigations by U.S. government oversight bodies and Congress. Previous investigations have pointed out major security deficiencies in the Secret Service’s arrangements for the rally.