First appearance on FOX — David Duch, one of the two surviving victims of the July 13 assassination attempt on former President Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, issued his first statement Wednesday night since being released from Allegheny County General Hospital last month.
Duch, a 57-year-old Marine Corps veteran, was shot twice while standing in the bleachers behind the stage where Trump was speaking when shots rang out at 6:11 p.m. on July 13.
“David, his wife Shelley, and the rest of the Duch family express their sincere gratitude for the overwhelming support they have received from friends, fellow Americans, and all those at home and abroad who have offered prayers for David and his family,” the Duch family said in a statement through their attorneys at the Law Offices of Max C. Feldman.
They also thanked “the brave men and women who saved his life, including the police officers, doctors, paramedics and medical professionals at Allegheny General Hospital, and those who continue to care for him as he continues on his road to recovery.”
Trump shooting: A timeline of the assassination attempt
David “Jake” Duch is a Marine Corps veteran who served in 1991’s Operation Desert Storm. (Facebook)
“Furthermore, David and his family offer their thoughts and prayers to the family of Corey Comperatore, who died as a hero protecting his wife and daughters from oncoming gunfire at a rally; James Copenhaver, who survived being shot twice at a rally while exercising his fundamental right to freely express his support for a political candidate; and President Trump, who continues to fight unflinchingly in the face of danger to Make America Great Again and restore America’s status as the strongest and most economically sound nation in the world,” the statement continues.
Marine David Duch escaped assassination attempt despite being shot, friends say
Former US President Donald Trump, his face covered in blood, gestures as gunshots ring out during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Reuters/Brendan McDiarmid)
Comperatore, a husband, father of two and former fire chief for the Buffalo Township Fire Department, was shot and killed while trying to protect his wife and daughters from gunfire.
Duch and 74-year-old James Copenhaver, who was shot twice and seriously injured at the rally, retained attorneys Nicholas and Joseph Feldman of the Law Offices of Max C. Feldman to “protect our best interests as we navigate one of the most challenging periods of our lives.”
Video taken from the perspective of the victim of the Trump assassination attempt shows a figure moving across a rooftop moments before the shooting
Trump collapsed with a visible wound on the side of his head and was removed by Secret Service agents. Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger said the shooter and one spectator were killed and another was wounded. (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)
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Federal authorities are still investigating the motive behind the shooter, Thomas Crooks, attempting to assassinate President Trump.
The FBI urges anyone with information about the incident to submit their information to FBI.gov/butler or call 1-800-CALL-FBI.
