‘This should not happen:’ Trump rallygoer
- Robin Leasure said she thought it was fireworks going off
- Rally attendee grateful that Trump is OK
- Americans need to come together, she says
A screen grab captured from a video shows Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump appears to be injured after gunshots were reported as he is rushed offstage during a rally on July 13, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. Trump was seen bloodied on his right ear as he was being evacuated from the stage, according to social media footage. (Photo by Trump Campaign Office / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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(NewsNation) — Robin Leasure was happy to finally get to a Trump rally and see the former president in person.
“Very lively. Everybody just couldn’t wait,” the Ohio resident told NewsNation. But the great mood in the field north of Pittsburgh changed in an instant as gunfire shattered the scene. Former President Donald Trump was slightly wounded, one rallygoer was killed and at least one other was wounded. Secret Service agents shot and killed the shooter.
“I heard what I thought was fireworks. I think everybody was kind of at a pause. We all felt like it was fireworks. But then after, I heard ‘boom, boom, boom boom.'”
Leasure says she was in the middle of the field in Bulter County, Pennsylvania, and couldn’t pinpoint the origin of the gunfire, but “it just sounded so close.”
Once she and those around her realized it was gunfire and not fireworks, “Then everyone started screaming. It didn’t hit me yet. I just never thought that this would happen.”
As a nurse, Leasure said she wanted to stay and help, but police quickly ushered the crowd away from the rally venue. Then, she said, the gravity of what happened started to hit.
“How could this happen? Why is this happening? This is the United States of America. This should not happen,” Leasure said. “It breaks my heart that we’re living in a country that President Trump can’t even go out and campaign without his life being in jeopardy.”
Early Sunday morning, the FBI said the attempted assassin was Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, some 200 miles east of the rally.
