How does a gunman manage to shoot a former president in broad daylight at a campaign rally under the protection of local and federal law enforcement?
Following Donald Trump‘s claim that he fled the stage with blood on his head after sustaining a graze wound to his right ear while speaking in a field in Butler, Pennsylvania, that is the terrifying and unsolved question facing the nation and security experts.
As soon as the gunman started shooting, Secret Service agents shot and killed him, according to the agency. It was not immediately apparent who had shot the two injured spectators and the dead spectator. The incident is being looked at by law authorities as a possible assassination attempt.
An unknown gunman opened fire on the stage many times from a roof beyond the venue’s security perimeter. The attack seemed to be the consequence of a serious mistake, possibly the worst since President Ronald Reagan was shot and injured in 1981 outside a hotel in Washington.
Experts in security warned that it was challenging, if not impossible, to completely eradicate all threats, especially when it came to long-range weapons and open-air gatherings.
However, some claimed that standard safety measures ought to have stopped the gunman from climbing onto the neighboring roof.
Former Long Beach, California, SWAT commander Steve Nottingham referred to Saturday’s shooting as “a fundamental security failure.”
After serving as a security detail for visiting international dignitaries, including presidents, he currently instructs police on how to handle urgent situations. He indicated potential weaknesses in the real-time tracking of potential shooting locations and pre-event reconnaissance.
Nottingham claimed that “They should have covered those locations beforehand, therefore they were behind schedule.”
Having served on Secret Service detail, Jim Cavanaugh, a former special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, expressed his amazement at the gunman’s ability to hold a high position within rifle range of the rally location.
“Whenever I’ve been with them, they or the local SWAT police have taken every single high ground,” Cavanaugh claimed. “No one is permitted to stroll on rooftops. They are in control of the elevated position.
According to him, an AR-15 or other powerful rifle can hit targets up to 200 yards distant. Based on an examination of Google Earth photos, NBC News discovered that Trump was roughly 148 yards from the rooftop where the gunman was discovered dead.
There was a suspected gunman on a roof close to where Trump spoke
“Having served on Secret Service details, I find it incredible that someone could hold such a high position without realizing it,” Cavanaugh continued.
It is standard procedure for law officers to do a perimeter check stretching several hundred yards ahead of a political gathering, according to retired New York City police officer Jillian Snider, who was frequently dispatched to such events.
As an adjunct lecturer at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Snider noted, “However, that doesn’t mean someone can’t slyly slip into one of those roles later on—especially if that someone was well-prepared.” “That area has a lot of hiding places, and it is impossible to keep an eye on every potential location.”
“A person with such a strong desire to complete a task like this will find a way to try and finish it,” she continued.
A request for comment was not immediately answered by the Secret Service.
The FBI said in a statement on Saturday night that it is in charge of the investigation, together with members of its crisis response team and evidence response technicians.
The Secret Service announced last month that it was expanding the number of the team assigned to Trump as the presidential campaign heated up. According to Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi at the time, the increased security was done “to guarantee the utmost security for both the event locations and the transportation between them.”
Viewers reporting that they saw a man with a rifle bear crawling on a nearby roof may have been the first clue that something was awry during Trump’s speech on Saturday. One remembered attempting to draw the attention of the police.
“The police are scurrying around on the ground down there.” The witness told BBC News, “We’re like, ‘Hey man, there’s a guy on the roof with a rifle.'” “And the cops were like, ‘What?'” As if they were unaware of what was happening. “Right here on the roof,” we say. He’s visible to us from this position. He is visible. He’s on the ground.
The witness stated that the man started shooting a few minutes later.
Attendees in the front row of the event witnessed Secret Service operatives leap onto the platform and heard several pops. One, going by the name Erin, claimed to have seen blood on Trump’s ear and told NBC News so. She said she didn’t worry about her personal safety. She stated, “We were only worried about him,” alluding to Trump.
A few hours later, Trump claimed that a bullet had “pierced the upper part of my right ear” in a post on Truth Social.
Trump added, “I felt the bullet ripping through the skin as soon as I heard shots and a whizzing sound, so I knew right away that something was wrong.” “A lot of bleeding occurred, and I realized what was going on at that point.”
In a circumstance like as Saturday’s, it is hard to rule out every possible threat, according to former Secret Service agent Evy Poumpouras.
Poumpouras stated that because powerful firearms are readily available, outdoor rallies provide significant security concerns.
“It is possible for someone to effectively engage a target from a distance using weapons,” stated Poumpouras, who spent 12 years working as a Secret Service agent and protecting several presidents, including George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
“Suppose you barricaded this entire area. You own both the tactical element and the magnetometers. Everything is securely fastened. How is that outside perimeter secured? To what extent do you go? And are you able to cover everything? There is an issue with that.
“When your guns are equipped with long-range shooting capabilities, how are all those elevated locations secured?” she continued, regardless of whether the person was in an elevated position or not. This is what you have to contend with.