BETHEL PARK, Pa. – As law enforcement officials continue to denounce security lapses at former President Trump’s Pennsylvania rally, the Butler County District Attorney has refuted the testimony of the Pennsylvania State Police Chief.
Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger, in a press release on Wednesday, sought to clarify the sequence of events following congressional testimony by Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) Col. Christopher Parris.
“Butler is a racist,” Paris said Tuesday during a meeting before the shooting. [Emergency Services Unit] “ESU was in charge of that area and several Secret Service agents were patrolling the area,” he said, referring to the building where Thomas Crooks attacked the former president.
Paris said it was his understanding that ESU officers left their post to search for a suspicious person, but he said it was unclear whether the officers would have found Crooks if they had stayed put.
Goldinger said Paris’ testimony “misrepresented” the response of local police after the sniper spotted Crooks 20 minutes before the shooting.
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A police officer stands near the stage at a campaign rally for former Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on July 13, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
According to the district attorney, the two snipers took photographs of a “suspicious individual” sitting outside the American Glass Research building and circulated the photos to Secret Service and police command centers along with a note describing the individual as a “suspicious individual.”
According to the press release, Crooks “at some point” got up and moved to the other side of the building, causing local police to move inside the building “to attempt to keep an eye on” the suspect.
From his position inside the building, a sniper noticed Crooks sitting at a picnic table at the front of the building with his backpack on.
After Crooks was seen running away, one of the officers ran outside to search for him.
Buildings are seen adjacent to the Butler Farm Show, site of a campaign rally for former Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, on Monday, July 15, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Jean J. Puskar)
Goldinger said one officer remained on the second floor of the building even as a second officer followed Crooks outside.
Another sniper ran out to pursue Crooks, but failed to find him and returned to his post.
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“Neither officer was able to see Crooks in the other building due to the viewing angle from their positions to Crooks’ location,” the press release said.
Drone footage shows police investigating a shooting at a campaign rally for Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump on July 14, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Carlos Osorio/Reuters)
Goldinger said local police officers were at their assigned posts when the shootout occurred.
“Their post was the building,” he said in a press release. “One officer briefly left the building in response to a suspicious person who was not encountered by the officers, despite being reported to other officers. The officer returned to his post anyway, while other officers remained in the building, so the post was not vacated.”
It is wrong to say that these officers have resigned from their posts.
“It is wrong to say these officers have abandoned their duties,” he added.
“These ESU officers, and all other ESU officers, volunteered their time to attend the rally in support of the Secret Service. They performed their assigned duties.”
Colonel Christopher L. Parris, Superintendent of the Pennsylvania State Police, testified before the House Homeland Security Committee during a hearing held at the Cannon House Office Building in Washington, DC on July 23, 2024. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
In a statement to Fox News Digital, PSP said authorities “stand by their evidence.”
“Authorities stand by their statements,” the agency said. “The investigation into the shooting and its aftermath is ongoing.”
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the Secret Service.
