Secret Service Missed 102 Radio Calls During Trump Shooting Attempt

The U.S. Secret Service failed to receive 102 local radio transmissions concerning the gunman who targeted President Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, according to a government watchdog report released Thursday.

The agency remained unaware of these transmissions on July 13, 2024, because it had not set up a joint communications room with local law enforcement. These local authorities were actively receiving reports about the search for the suspicious individual, later identified as Thomas Crooks.

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Instead, we found that the secret service received only five phone calls and three text messages about Crooks.

The report from the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general noted that the Secret Service only received five phone calls and three text messages regarding Crooks. Consequently, Secret Service members did not alert President Trump's protective detail about the concerns surrounding the suspicious person.

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As a result, secret service members did not alert President Trump's protective detail about concerns of a suspicious person.

Recommendations outlined in the inspector general's report address critical areas such as information sharing and mitigating "line of sight vulnerabilities" before and during events. The Secret Service has stated its agreement with these recommendations.

A spokesperson for the agency confirmed that many of these recommendations had already been identified and have since been implemented as part of their ongoing reform efforts.

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Many of these recommendations were already identified ... and have since been implemented as part of our reform efforts.