Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old gunman who attempted to assassinate then-candidate Donald Trump on July 13, 2024, at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, was killed by Secret Service counter-snipers moments after firing.

Incident Overview

Crooks fired eight rounds from an AR-15-style rifle from a rooftop about 400 feet from the stage, grazing Trump's upper right ear, killing one spectator (Corey Comperatore), and critically injuring two others. He had climbed onto the roof undetected despite prior reports of a suspicious person, exposing security lapses at the open-air event.

Shooter's Fate

Crooks died at the scene. A Secret Service sniper fatally shot him 16 seconds after he began firing, as debris from a bullet hitting his rifle struck his face and neck, halting his attack. No trial or further legal action occurred, as he was neutralized immediately.

Shooter Background

  • Registered Republican but donated to a progressive PAC at age 17; no clear motive identified by FBI, despite online searches for Trump rally details, explosives, and figures like Biden.
  • Recent high school graduate with no criminal record; bought 50 rounds of ammo that day.
  • Mental health evaluations post-incident found no major disorders, though investigations continue into radicalization or foreign influence (unsubstantiated).

Investigation Updates

As of early 2026, the FBI probe remains open but inactive due to Crooks's death, focusing on security failures rather than accomplices. Congressional hearings criticized Secret Service lapses, leading to Director Kimberly Cheatle's resignation; no new charges filed. Recent 2026 "Trump shooter" mentions often confuse this with unrelated ICE agent shootings during Trump's deportation efforts, but those involve different perpetrators.

Trending Context & Reactions

Public discourse on forums like Reddit and X (formerly Twitter) mixes conspiracy theories (e.g., staged event) with grief over Comperatore, fueling 2024 election debates. Trump, now president after his 2024 reelection and 2025 inauguration, has called for unity while decrying media coverage.

"What struck former President Trump in the ear was a bullet... fired from the deceased subject's rifle." – FBI statement, July 2024

TL;DR: The Trump shooter, Thomas Crooks, was killed on-site by Secret Service during the July 2024 Butler rally attempt; no ongoing trial, but security probes persist.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.