By Steve Neavling
The Secret Service has suspended six employees without pay for their roles in the security breakdown that allowed a gunman to shoot at Donald Trump during a July rally in Butler, Penn., an agency official told NBC News.
The suspensions, which ranged from 10 to 42 days, affected both supervisors and rank-and-file agents. It’s unclear when the disciplinary actions took effect.
The fallout comes after widespread criticism over how a 20-year-old gunman was able to shoot Trump, grazing his ear, and kill a bystander, firefighter Corey Comperatore. Federal officials have called the attack a possible act of domestic terrorism.
Among those suspended was the special agent in charge of the Pittsburgh field office, which had coordinated security for the rally with local law enforcement.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned less than two weeks after the shooting, saying she took “full responsibility for the security lapse.” A Senate briefing later revealed that agents spotted the gunman on a rooftop 10 minutes before Trump took the stage and 20 minutes before shots were fired. The agency also faced criticism for how slowly Trump was removed from the stage after being hit.
A House task force investigating the incident concluded the shooting was preventable and issued nearly a dozen recommendations for reform. It later praised the agency’s handling of a second assassination attempt in September in Florida as an example of effective protective planning.
