WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — Communication breakdowns with local law enforcement hampered the U.S. Secret Service’s performance ahead of the July attempt on former President Donald Trump’s life, according to a new report that lays out a series of missed opportunities to stop the gunman who opened fire from an unsecured roof.
A five-page document summarizing the Secret Service report’s key conclusions finds fault with both local and federal law enforcement, underscoring the cascading and wide-ranging failings that preceded the July 13 shooting at a Butler, Pennsylvania, campaign rally where Trump was wounded in the ear by gunfire.
What went wrong?
The report details a series of “communications deficiencies” before the shooting by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was shot by a Secret Service countersniper after firing eight rounds in Trump’s direction from the roof of a building less than 150 yards from where Trump was speaking. It makes clear that the Secret Service knew even before the shooting that the rally site posed a security challenge.
Among the problems: Some local police at the site were unaware of the existence of two communications centers on the grounds, meaning officers did not know that the Secret Service was not receiving their radio transmission.
Law enforcement also communicated vital information outside the Secret Service’s radio frequencies. As officers searched for Crooks before the shooting, details were being transmitted “via mobile/cellular devices in staggered or fragmented fashion” instead of through the Secret Service’s own network.
What is the Secret Service doing about it?
The report’s executive summary does not identify specific individuals who may be to blame, nor does it indicate whether any staff members have been disciplined, though
The Secret Service’s investigation is one of numerous inquiries, including by Congress and a watchdog probe by the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general office.
Rowe said the July shooting and Sunday’s episode, in which 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh was arrested after Secret Service agents detected a rifle poking through shrubbery lining the West Palm Beach, Florida, golf course where Trump was playing, underscore the need for a paradigm shift in how the agency protects public officials.
Rowe insisted that despite the attempted assassination in July and the August golf course incident, the agency will not be “dropping standards” for prospective agents.
“We have not dropped standards,” he said. “You need to develop those agents being on the presidential protective division or the vice presidential detail. It is a very, very high-pressure situation. It requires a lot of maturity. It requires decision-making, analytic skills and the ability to problem-solve, and it takes time to develop those skills.”
