Secret Service director says agency will participate in assassination attempt investigation amid questions over procedures

Originally Published: 15 JUL 24 08:19 ET

Updated: 15 JUL 24 12:12 ET

By Whitney Wild, CNN

(CNN) — In her first public statement since the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle on Monday said the agency will “participate fully” in an independent review ordered by President Joe Biden and also said the agency will work with Congress on “any oversight action.”

Cheatle, who was appointed by Biden in 2022, expressed confidence in the agency’s security plan for this week’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and said changes have been made to Trump’s security detail since Saturday.

“The Secret Service is tasked with the tremendous responsibility of protecting the current and former leaders of our democracy,” Cheatle said. “It is a responsibility that I take incredibly seriously, and I am committed to fulfilling that mission.”

Questions have swirled about the agency’s preparations in the aftermath of Saturday’s shooting, which wounded the former president, killed an attendee and left two people critically injured. The shooter, identified by authorities as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, also was killed by Secret Service agents at the scene.

Among the concerns and questions is how a sniper was able to obtain rooftop access roughly 150 meters from the former president’s position at the podium at an outdoor rally.

Notably, the shooter’s location was outside the security perimeter, raising questions about both the size of the perimeter and efforts to sweep and secure the American Glass Research building, and how the shooter was able to obtain rooftop access.

A spokesman for the United States Secret Service told CNN the agency did not sweep the building where Crooks shot at Trump but instead leaned on local law enforcement to conduct security at that location.

The spokesman added that there was supposed to be local law enforcement posted in that area, but it is not clear where that post was supposed to be located. A source not directly involved but with knowledge of Secret Service operations described possible roaming posts, for example, as part of some operational plans.

The Secret Service regularly works with local law enforcement agencies to assist with securing events, as is the case in Milwaukee. Further, the Secret Service utilized two local counter-sniper teams during Trump’s rally, in addition to two Secret Service counter-sniper teams.

The spokesman did not know at the time of CNN’s inquiry which local agency should have been responsible for the building.

A source familiar with the investigation says one of the two local counter-sniper teams was supposed to cover the building where the gunman was perched, noting that it was a designated post in the operational plan.

Meanwhile, additional details about the shooting continued to emerge Monday morning, with a senior law enforcement official saying the shooter purchased 50 rounds of ammunition at a local gun store just hours before carrying out his attack.

Biden said Sunday he has directed Cheatle to review all security measures for the RNC as well as an independent review into Saturday’s rally shooting “to assess exactly what happened. He pledged to publicly release the results of that inquiry.

Law enforcement sources say that part of the aftermath will include a review of whether the Secret Service had enough assets to protect Trump days ahead of officially becoming the Republican presidential nominee and whether procedures were followed to conduct security sweeps of the building that offered a vantage point for the alleged shooter.

Congress demands answers

Republican and Democratic lawmakers are already demanding answers from the agency on the security posture and hearings on the incident.

The Senate Homeland Security Committee is opening a bipartisan investigation into the shooting, chairman Gary Peters said Monday, and it hopes to “expedite” the process and hold hearings before the Senate leaves for August recess. The Michigan Democrat said the committee will use its investigation into the security failures at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, as a “template” for this new effort.

In the House, Speaker Mike Johnson vowed a “full investigation” of the shooting, featuring testimony from USSS, DHS and the FBI, and two Republicans on the Senate Homeland Security Committee have also called for an investigation. Rep. Jeff Duncan, a South Carolina Republican, on Sunday called for an independent commission, in the style of the one that investigated the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, “to give a non-partisan examination into the how and why aspects of this security posture.”

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, appearing on CNN Monday morning, acknowledged that Saturday’s incident was a security “failure.”

“We are going to analyze through an independent review how that occurred, why it occurred and make recommendations and findings to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” he said.

This story has been updated with additional information.

CNN’s John Miller contributed to this report.

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