For a span of around two and a half minutes, a group of at least five law enforcement officers in Pennsylvania surrounded a warehouse where a gunman had ascended to the roof near a rally attended by former President Donald J. Trump. Their objective was to intercept the attacker before he could target Trump, as revealed by new footage from police body-cams, dashcams, and social media.
The recently released footage, including body-cam and dashcam recordings along with eyewitness video from YouTube, offers an unprecedented view of the law enforcement response at the scene. These visuals document the critical moments from approximately 6:08 p.m., illustrating the officers’ attempts to pinpoint the gunman’s location, find a way onto the roof, and assess that he was armed. By about 6:11 p.m., the gunman, Thomas Crooks, began shooting.
Body-cam and dashcam videos shed light on the Pennsylvania police response to a gunman at a Trump rally
Before these videos surfaced, the exact movements and actions of law enforcement during the incident were unclear. While state police and Secret Service accounts provided some details, the footage obtained by The New York Times through a public records request delivers a precise, second-by-second account from the perspective of two officers close to the gunman. The footage also raises questions about why the Secret Service did not evacuate Trump from the stage in Butler, Pa., on July 13, despite local officers’ efforts to reach Crooks, who had not yet been confirmed as armed.
The Times’ review includes 12 videos released by the Butler Township Police Department, showing three Butler officers and one Pennsylvania state trooper focused on the rooftop where Crooks fired. Eyewitness footage previously shared on YouTube also confirms the involvement of a fifth law enforcement officer in the same area.
