Six U.S. Secret Service agents have been suspended for security failures related to the July 2024 attempted assassination of then-presidential candidate Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, an official confirmed to ABC News.
The disciplinary action comes just days before the first anniversary of the July 13 shooting, in which Trump narrowly escaped death but was wounded when a bullet grazed his ear during a campaign rally. Tragically, 50-year-old firefighter Corey Comperatore was killed in the attack.
The gunman, later identified by the FBI as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was fatally shot on-site by Secret Service countersnipers.
A scathing independent review by the Department of Homeland Security, conducted in the wake of the attack, found widespread procedural failures and a lack of vigilance that contributed to Trump’s vulnerability.
“The Secret Service does not perform at the elite levels needed to discharge its critical mission,” the report stated. “The agency has become bureaucratic, complacent, and static, even as threats have grown and technology has advanced.”
Kimberly Cheatle, then Director of the Secret Service, resigned 10 days after the incident under intense bipartisan pressure.
The suspensions—ranging from 10 to 42 days—were issued in recent months and affect personnel from supervisory ranks to line agents. All six have the right to appeal the disciplinary action, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The Butler shooting was not the only security breach involving Trump last year. Just nine weeks later, a second apparent assassination attempt occurred while he was golfing at his West Palm Beach resort. Although no injuries were reported in that incident, it prompted immediate changes to his protective detail.
Following both attacks, Trump was granted presidential-level security protection as his campaign reassessed its event planning and security procedures.
The agency continues to face sharp scrutiny as lawmakers and the public demand accountability and reforms to prevent future breaches.
