Two men who were shot during an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump this summer in Pennsylvania spoke out about their experience in an exclusive interview with NBC News. David Dutch, a 57-year-old ex-Marine, and James Copenhaver, a 74-year-old retired liquor store manager, were sitting in the bleachers behind Trump at a campaign rally in Butler on July 13 when shots rang out. Another man, Corey Comperatore, was killed in the shooting while shielding his family. The shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was fatally shot by sharpshooters after opening fire from an unsecured rooftop nearby.
Dutch described the moment of being shot as feeling like getting hit with a sledgehammer in the chest. He could see pieces of the bleacher and metal flying around until the shooting stopped. Both Dutch and Copenhaver expressed anger at the situation and stated that it should never have happened. Their attorneys are looking into possible litigation against the U.S. Secret Service for what they believe was negligence in protecting Trump and other bystanders at the rally.
Copenhaver noted that the shooting wouldn’t have happened if the area had been properly secured. Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the Secret Service at the time, called the attempt on Trump’s life at the campaign rally in Pennsylvania the agency’s most significant operational failure in decades. She resigned following calls from lawmakers. Trump returned to the Pennsylvania fairgrounds earlier this month, where the shooting took place, and urged a large crowd to deliver an Election Day victory tied to his survival of the assassination attempt.
The two men, Dutch and Copenhaver, who were critically injured in the shooting, made their first public statements since the incident through the NBC News interview. Dutch, a Marine veteran who served in Desert Shield and Desert Storm, expressed his frustration and anger over the situation, saying it should never have occurred. Both men believe that the Secret Service’s negligence played a role in the shooting and are exploring legal options.
The shooting at the campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, resulted in the death of Corey Comperatore, who was trying to shield his family. The shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, opened fire from an unsecured rooftop nearby before being shot by sharpshooters. The incident highlighted a major security lapse, and former Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle called it a significant operational failure. Her resignation followed calls from lawmakers demanding accountability.
Despite the traumatic event, Trump returned to the Pennsylvania fairgrounds, where the attempted assassination took place, earlier this month. He addressed a large crowd and connected his survival of the shooting to the importance of winning the upcoming election. Dutch and Copenhaver’s statements shed light on the lasting impact of the shooting and the ongoing legal proceedings related to the Secret Service’s alleged negligence. The incident serves as a reminder of the risks associated with political events and the need for enhanced security measures to protect public figures and bystanders.
