Who Was the Rally Attendee Killed at the Trump Rally? Details on Corey Comperatore
Details on the shooting are still developing.
Jul. 15 2024, Updated 10:51 a.m. ET
On July 13, 2024, Former President Donald Trump was speaking at a political rally when several pops rang out over the crowd. Shortly after that, Trump raised his hand to his right ear and ducked to the ground as his Secret Service members rushed to the stage to cover him.
Although the shots were presumably intended for Trump himself, there was a large crowd of people sitting on the bleachers behind the former president as he gave his speech. Tragically, while Trump himself is fine according to a statement from his team, one of the people sitting behind him has reportedly died.
Who was the rally attendee killed at the Trump rally?
In the immediate aftermath of the rally incident, The New York Times reported that there was "blood visible on the left-hand bleachers," and that it appeared "that a rallygoer might have been hit by a ricocheting bullet."
Meryl Kornfield of The Washington Post reported that the shooter was dead, as was an audience member who had been attending the rally. Furthermore, Kornfield shared that another audience member was in critical condition following the incident.
Days after the rally, CNN confirmed Corey Comperatore was the attendee who had been killed. Comperatore was a firefighter based in Pennsylvania. The husband and father of two reportedly jumped into the gunfire while trying to shield his family from the bullets before he succumbed to them himself.
"Corey was a girl dad. Corey was a firefighter," Josh Shapiro, Governor of Pennsylvania said. "Corey went to church every Sunday. Corey loved his community. Most especially, Corey loved his family."
Before Comperatore's identity was made public, a video was shared on X (formerly Twitter). The video showed CBS News reporter Jake Rosen speaking to an emergency room doctor who says he tried to save someone in the crowd who had been hurt. Please be advised that the video contains some graphic language and also what appears to be blood on the man's shirt:
Butler, Penn.'s authorities have stated that the shooter has been identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks. The 20-year-old shooter was killed at the scene.
The New York Times reported that the Secret Service evacuated the crowd after the shooting but that said evacuation was something of a logistical nightmare. “Right now, they’re trying to evacuate 50,000 people on one country road,” James E. Hulings, the Butler County Republican Committee chairman, told reporter Neil Vigdor. “It’s such a tragedy. So many people were crying. We waited here since 10:30 this morning.”