Col. Christopher Paris, commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police, left, at a House Committee on Homeland Security hearing examining the Trump assassination attempt. (Rod Lamkey Jr./AP)
Two Pennsylvania law enforcement officers tasked with securing the building used as a vantage point by shooter Thomas Crooks during former President Donald Trump’s July 13 campaign rally left their second-floor posts to search for the suspected gunman shortly before he opened fire, the Pennsylvania State Police commissioner testified Tuesday on Capitol Hill.
Rep. Dan Bishop, a Republican from North Carolina, asked Col. Christopher Paris, commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police, whether the officers had left the same building where the gunman was perched on the roof to go looking for him.
“My understanding is yes, along with other municipal officers that responded to that area,” Paris replied in a hearing before the House Homeland Security Committee.
Tuesday’s hearing was called so that lawmakers could “examine the facts and circumstances” surrounding the assassination attempt on Trump that left two people dead, including the gunman, and injured Trump and two others.
Patrick Yoes, national president of the Fraternal Order of Police, also testified at the hearing.
“There were critical failures of security at the event in Butler. It is important that we learn from these failures to better provide safety and security for our leaders moving forward,” Yoes said in his opening statement.
On Monday, a bipartisan group of lawmakers on the committee toured the site of the attempted assassination of former President Trump in Butler Township, Pa.
“I, for one, was struck by how close the unsecured building from which Thomas Crooks took his shot was to the stage where President Trump was standing,” GOP Chairman Mark Green from Tennessee said during his opening statement Tuesday. “What we saw yesterday only raises more questions about how this roof was unsecured.”
❓Who was assigned to monitor the building the shooter used?
Paris said the PSP was acting in a “supportive” role to the Secret Service at the rally. They were given two main areas of responsibility, Paris said: the former president’s motorcade and two staff security posts that were designated by the Secret Service inside the secured perimeter of the Butler County Farm Show, where the campaign rally was held.
The Secret Service also established a communications post, according to Paris, in order to coordinate communications between different agencies like the PSP and the Butler County Sheriff’s office, who may use different means of communication.
Paris testified that the Secret Service assigned Butler County Emergency Services Unit (ESU) to secure the building, known as AGR International, that Crooks climbed and used to fire his shots at the stage where Trump spoke.
“On [a walkthrough of the rally site] our area commander asked specifically who was responsible for the AGR building and we were told that Butler ESU was responsible for that area by several Secret Service agents on that walkthrough,” Paris told Green.
👀 The search for a suspicious person
Bishop asked Paris if he knew of any law enforcement officers that were posted to the second floor of the AGR building.
“To my knowledge there were two posted there from Butler ESU,” Paris replied.
The ESU officers first spotted Crooks from a second floor window of the AGR building as he was loitering outside the secured perimeter of the rally. They flagged Crooks as suspicious.
Law enforcement suspicions were heightened after Crooks was later spotted with a rangefinder, a handheld tool used to calculate distances.
ESU officers took a photo of Crooks and sent it to the Pennsylvania State Police, Paris testified, and that PSP “immediately” relayed it to the Secret Service at the communications post. The Secret Service then provided the PSP a number for them to send the photo and information to, Paris testified. That exchange took place roughly 20-25 minutes before the gunfire erupted.
“After Crooks had been identified as a suspicious person,” Paris testified, the two ESU officers stationed inside the AGR International building conducted a search “alongside other local officers” for him.
“Are you then saying from your knowledge that those ESU officers left the location where they could look out the window in search of this person?” Rep. Dan Bishop, a Republican from North Carolina, asked Paris.
“Yes, that is my understanding,” the commissioner replied.
Paris testified that he was not certain if the two ESU officers would have had a clear shot at Crooks if they had maintained the position at their post on the second story.
⏱️ A ‘matter of seconds’
A Pennsylvania police officer who was hoisted up the side of the ARG building by another police officer encountered Crooks on the rooftop. Crooks then pointed his AR-15 rifle at the officer, who then dropped down to the ground for safety.
Paris testified that it was a “matter of seconds,” between that encounter and when the gunman first fired the shots toward the stage..
↘️ ‘Safety factor’
Former Secret Services Director Kimberly Cheatle, who resigned on Tuesday, previously told ABC News that a “safety factor” was the reason that the Secret Service did not have anyone posted on the sloped rooftop of the ARG building.
Green asked Paris if the building’s sloped roof would have prevented a Secret Service countersniper from being positioned there.
“I don’t believe so, sir,” Paris replied.
🇺🇸 What’s next?
While several investigations into the assassination attempt are underway, at least one other public hearing is scheduled on Capitol Hill this week. FBI Director Christopher Wray is expected to testify before the Judiciary Committee on Wednesday about the agency’s investigation into the Trump rally shooting.