A year after the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, six Secret Service agents assigned to his security detail have been disciplined—but none have been fired.
During an interview with CBS, Matt Quinn, the deputy director of the Secret Service, confirmed that the agents were suspended without pay for periods ranging from 10 to 42 days. Upon returning, they were reassigned to lower-responsibility roles.
“We are laser-focused on fixing the root cause of the problem,” Quinn stated, defending the agency’s decision not to terminate any personnel.
The attack occurred on July 13, 2024, when a gunman opened fire during a Trump rally. A bullet grazed Trump’s ear, and the former president later said he believes God saved his life. The shooter had somehow gained rooftop access near the event—armed with a rifle—raising serious concerns about the security breakdown.
????BREAKING: Six Secret Service agents suspended over the Butler, PA assassination attempt on President Trump. pic.twitter.com/TJNZr3z6qJ
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 10, 2025
One person, Corey Comperatore—a 50-year-old firefighter, husband, and father—was killed by the shooter. Two others were wounded. The gunman, identified as Thomas Crooks, was ultimately shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper.
Quinn described the incident as “an operational failure” and emphasized the agency is working to prevent future breakdowns. He revealed that the Secret Service has since implemented a fleet of military-grade drones and mobile command centers to enhance real-time communication with local law enforcement—capabilities that were lacking at the time of the attack.
The Butler shooting, along with a separate foiled plot weeks later in West Palm Beach, Florida, led to the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle. These incidents also sparked congressional hearings and multiple investigations.
A 180-page report from a bipartisan House panel concluded that the lapses in Butler were “not isolated to the campaign event itself.” The report pointed to deficiencies in “leadership and training” that enabled the security failure.
No additional dismissals have been announced, but the agency continues to face scrutiny over how the breach was allowed to occur in the first place.
