Two Trump supporters gravely wounded at the Butler rally are now dragging the federal government into court, exposing a chain of alleged security breakdowns that every America‑first voter should know about.
Story Snapshot
- Two Pennsylvania men shot at the 2024 Butler Trump rally are suing the United States, alleging “entirely preventable” Secret Service failures.[2]
- The lawsuits say the shooter used an unsecured AGR Complex roof that had a clear line of sight to President Trump and the crowd.[1][3]
- Plaintiffs claim local police flagged the suspect as suspicious and shared a photo, but Secret Service procedures kept that warning from agents guarding Trump.[3]
- Congressional investigators and even Secret Service officials have already acknowledged serious security mistakes around the assassination attempt.[1][4]
Victims Fight Back After Butler Assassination Attempt
Two years after bullets tore through a crowd of patriots gathered to hear then‑candidate Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, two of the wounded are taking the federal government to court.[2] James Copenhaver and David Dutch, who were seriously injured when twenty‑year‑old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire, have filed separate negligence lawsuits against the United States in federal court.[2] Their complaints argue the attack was “entirely preventable” and the result of cascading failures by the United States Secret Service.[2]
The lawsuits, filed in the Western District of Pennsylvania, seek at least one hundred fifty thousand dollars in damages for each plaintiff and their families.[1][2] Both men say they suffered “life altering physical and emotional injuries” and expect ongoing surgeries and treatment tied directly to the shooting.[2] According to reporting on the complaints, the families argue that the federal government’s first duty at a rally featuring a former president and leading candidate was to secure the perimeter and protect innocent citizens who came to exercise their free‑speech and assembly rights.[2]
Unsecured Roof, Missed Warnings, And Communication Breakdowns
Central to the lawsuits is the AGR Complex roof, the elevated position Crooks used to fire on President Trump and the crowd.[1][3] Court filings described in local and national coverage say the Secret Service knew the AGR buildings had a clear line of sight to the stage and “required special attention,” yet no officers were assigned to secure or monitor the roof.[3] Reports indicate the Secret Service allegedly assumed local law enforcement would cover the area, but local officers had already told federal planners they lacked the manpower to do so.[3]
The complaints also highlight a troubling timeline of missed warning signs before the first shot.[3] Local law enforcement reportedly observed Crooks acting erratically, using a rangefinder, and operating a drone over the rally grounds in the hours before the attack.[3] Officers circulated an alert with his photograph, but the lawsuits say Secret Service policies meant that information was not widely shared with agents protecting Trump or manning security posts.[3] Plaintiffs argue that, with better communication and clear command protocols, Crooks could have been located, questioned, and removed from the area long before he pulled the trigger.[1][3]
Alleged Technology Failures And Fragmented Command
Beyond physical security, the suits describe technology and command‑and‑control problems that sound alarm bells for anyone worried about government competence.[1][3] Coverage of the filings says a Secret Service drone designed to detect other drones was not operational for most of the day, allegedly because the assigned agent had limited experience and spent hours troubleshooting.[3] The system reportedly was not ready until late afternoon, even as Crooks was believed to be using his own drone to survey the grounds.[3] Plaintiffs say operational drones could have spotted him on or near the AGR complex more than two hours before the attack.
Reports also say the complaints accuse the Secret Service of setting up fragmented, separate command centers instead of a unified post and relying heavily on cell phones rather than centralized radio channels.[1][3] According to these accounts, some agents on site were even hearing traffic from an unrelated event with First Lady Jill Biden and had to switch frequencies, adding more confusion.[3] The victims’ attorneys describe this structure as a “cascade of failures” that left agents in the dark at the very moment they needed a clear, shared picture of emerging threats.[1][3]
Congressional Findings, Admissions Of Error, And The Road Ahead
The Butler lawsuits are landing in a climate where multiple investigations have already questioned how federal security was handled around the attempt on Trump’s life.[1][4] The Senate Homeland Security Committee and a bipartisan House task force both concluded that there were significant failures in the Secret Service plan for securing the site and responding to the threat posed by Crooks.[1] Those findings, while not written by the plaintiffs, echo the core charge that rally‑goers and a former president were not given the level of protection Americans reasonably expect.
The two men who were shot at the Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, are suing the United States for "life altering physical and emotional injuries.”
David Dutch and James Copenhaver were shot at the rally on July 13, 2024. The men’s attorneys state that their injuries were a… pic.twitter.com/92hbzStjim
— The National Desk (@TND) June 3, 2026
Reporting also notes that Secret Service leadership has conceded at least some mistakes.[4] A senior official and Trump himself have both referred to the agency having “a bad day” and making “a mistake,” including not placing an agent on the AGR roof and failing to ensure robust communication with local police.[1][4] At the same time, the government has not publicly accepted legal responsibility, and the FBI has said Crooks acted alone, leaving a court to sort out whether acknowledged errors rise to negligence under federal law.[2]
Sources:
[1] Web – Two men shot at Trump’s Butler rally sue federal government over …
[2] Web – Two people shot during Trump’s Butler rally sue US for negligence
[3] Web – Trump Assassination Attempt Update!
[4] Web – 2 Trump supporters wounded at Butler sue federal government
