The report contained new interviews with local law enforcement officials during the July 13 incident.
The House task force investigating the July 13 assassination attempt targeting former President Donald Trump concluded that the incident was “preventable,” releasing new testimony from local law enforcement officials who provided accounts of communications and operational failures at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Released on Oct. 21, the report concluded that there was a “lack of planning and coordination” between the U.S. Secret Service and its local law enforcement partners during the Trump rally.
The Secret Service, it found, “did not give clear guidance to the relevant state and local agencies about managing areas outside the secure event perimeter, and there was no joint meeting on the day of the rally between [the Secret Service] and all state and local law enforcement agencies assisting” the federal agency.
The House task force report mostly echoes findings made by a Senate Homeland Security panel report and an internal Secret Service report, both of which were released in September.
The report included findings that were already publicly released. But it also contained new interviews with local law enforcement officials in Butler County about how the Secret Service failed to perform on July 13.
Unnamed officials in Butler provided more details regarding how the gunman was first spotted by law enforcement and that nothing was done until he opened fire upon the rally, clipping Trump’s right ear with a bullet while killing a rally attendee and severely injuring two others.
As one example, one emergency services official told the panel that he sent a text message to his colleague that the shooter was seen with a rangefinder at about 5:17 p.m. However, the colleague did not see the message until more than 20 minutes later, at about 5:40 p.m.
The report also included new testimony from the officer who attempted to climb onto the roof of the building where the gunman had perched before he opened fire. Days after the shooting, local officials confirmed that an officer tried to get on the roof but that the shooter pointed his weapon at him, forcing the officer to back down.
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