In Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks fired several rounds from a rooftop toward former President Donald Trump and into a crowd of attendees during a campaign rally. One bullet grazed Trump’s ear, while other projectiles critically injured two people and killed one man, 50-year-old Corey Comperatore.
In the wake of the shooting, President Joe Biden asked Americans to avoid making assumptions about the shooter’s motives. While this is a developing story, many constituents — including people at Salt Lake Community College — are expressing worry about the current state of U.S. politics.
Here is what we know
FBI authorities identified Crooks, from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the gunman. Crooks fired from a rooftop approximately 130 yards west of the stage where Trump was speaking to supporters.
Trump, now the Republican presidential nominee, was ushered off stage by Secret Service agents, who surrounded him and interlocked their arms to shield him from any further gunfire.
According to an FBI press release, the weapon Crooks used — an AR-style rifle — was legally purchased by his father. The release also indicated the FBI believes Crooks acted alone, and that his motive remains unknown.
According to Federal Election Commission records, Crooks donated $15 to a progressive campaign on the same day that President Joe Biden took office in 2021.
USA Today reported that Crooks had no criminal record in Pennsylvania’s public court records database, and no federal court records.
Media interviews with the shooter’s high school classmates have offered conflicting information. While some classmates recall instances of bullying and teasing, others remember Crooks as quiet and reserved.
SLCC community reacts
Several SLCC community members shared thoughts and concerns after the July 13 shooting.
Kelly Brown, a sophomore majoring in general education, said she was repulsed by the incident and that violence is no way to resolve differences.
“I was watching it while it happened,” Brown said. “I’m a Trump supporter. Regardless of where you stand on the issues, we cannot have that kind of thing happen. There is so much division and hate. Things like that could cause a lot of backlash afterwards.”
Brown said she is not apprehensive about going to future rallies, if she chooses to.
“I’m not nervous to go to a rally. We can’t be,” Brown said.
Regarding the reported accounts of the bullying Crooks may have experienced in school, Brown acknowledged the impact of bullying on individuals, but emphasized that such experiences should not be used as excuses for harmful actions.
“[It] is still no excuse. So many [have been] bullied in school,” Brown said, adding, “My heart goes out to the guy, something was obviously wrong.”
Brown also said that guns should not be the primary focus in situations like this.
“My thing with guns is that we always hear about the harm [they do],” Brown said. “We don’t hear about the protection they bring.”
Jacob, a freshman in the Fashion Institute who wishes to have their last name kept private, said that guns are too prevalent in American society, regardless of how they’re used.
“It is too easy to get a gun,” Jacob said. “The background search [system] needs to be better.”
“I think there should be more of a process to getting a gun,” Jacob added. “Gun violence is a big problem.”
Kai Lyon, a sophomore majoring in environmental science, suggested that the shooting exemplified the political fanaticism fostered by Trump and his supporters.
“[I’m] not surprised,” Lyon said. “The radical form that Trump takes breeds radical thinking — where if we disagree, the only option is to become violent. I’ve seen people go against him and it has not gone very well. Maybe that is just because of the people put forward to go against him.”
Instead of a ban, Lyon said he advocates for preventative gun control measures such as mental health checks, mandatory protection orders and time-of-purchase waiting periods.
“My concern with these types of situations is gun control,” Lyon said. “[But] I don’t want to see guns taken away completely.”
Lyon also said he believes the only reason one would need an automatic rifle — like the one Crooks used in the shooting — would be hunting. Lyon contended that, when used beyond hunting, such guns turn from being tools for self-defense or sport into invasive weapons.
“There is no reason you need a serious weapon like that aside from hunting,” Lyon argued. “At that point, it isn’t a self-protection weapon, it becomes an offensive weapon.”
Lyon said there must be middle ground in the gun safety debate.
“We [in the U.S.] are about gun rights on one side and gun protection on the other,” Lyon posited. “There has to be a happy medium.”
Thayne Center director Timothy Davis noted the anxieties some may feel over the intensity of recent political discourse and the lack of middle ground in the nation’s politics.
“It feels like [we are] on a tightrope wire with how we respond to politics,” Davis said. “I have a lot of private opinions, [but] I don’t want to say anything because things are so contentious right now.”
Mason Bancroft, a former president of SLCC Student Association, recently graduated from the school with a degree in psychology. He agreed with Davis regarding the uncomfortable feeling of speaking one’s mind in the current political climate.
“It is a very scary moment in history,” Bancroft said. “It’s terrifying to go to rallies and stuff like that. I don’t know what to think … I’m apprehensive to say anything on one side or the other.”
Bancroft said that staying safe and looking out for one another is crucial at the current time.
“With the debates going on, and elections coming up, tensions are rising,” Bancroft said. “Be mindful … keep people’s safety in mind.”
