In an interview with ABC News, United States Secret Service (USSS) Director Kim Cheatle stated that snipers weren't positioned on the roof where failed presidential assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks fired from because it was sloped and deemed unsafe.
However, this explanation raises questions, particularly since snipers positioned behind former President Donald Trump during Saturday's rally were also on a sloped roof.
Questionable Defense of Agency's Actions
The Washington Examiner has more information, including Cheatle's defense that the sloped roof prevented agents from securing it, despite the clear line of sight from it to Trump's podium:
During Cheatle's first interview since Saturday with ABC News on Monday evening, she claimed the shape of the rooftop prevented counter-snipers from stopping Crooks's attack on Trump.
After ABC anchor Pierre Thomas asked Cheatle if the roof should have been secured, the Secret Service director deflected the question.
“That building, in particular, has a sloped roof at its highest point,” Cheatle told Thomas. “And so there will be a safety factor that will be considered there that we wouldn't want to put somebody up on a sloped roof. And so you know the decision was made to secure the building from the inside.” [emphasis added]
Further defending the major security lapses that day, Cheatle mentioned that agents had identified a “potential person of suspicion.” However, by the time a police officer followed him up a ladder to the roof, Crooks was seconds away from opening fire.
The interview came mere hours after Fox News reported that local law enforcement had spotted Crooks acting suspiciously and carrying a range-finder 30 minutes before the attempted assassination.
“I'm being told that the shooter was actually identified as a potential person of suspicion. Units started responding to seek that individual out,” Cheatle told ABC News. “Unfortunately, with the rapid succession of how things unfolded, by the time that individual was eventually located, they were on the rooftop and were able to fire off at the former president.”
Bystanders' Warnings and Law Enforcement's Delayed Response
Witnesses nearby noticed Crooks army crawling across the roof well before the first shots were fired. Videos posted online show multiple people calling out to police officers, pointing out Crooks' position.
Despite these warnings, Crooks managed to reach his firing position on a building that served as a staging area for local law enforcement – including a counter sniper team.
Immediate Action After Shots Fired
Seconds after Crooks began shooting, a Secret Service Counter Sniper Team (CS) quickly responded and fatally shot him. However, it should have never reached that point.
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