Curtis Jones stood behind a table of miniature farm dioramas at a toy show in Butler, Pa., when he spoke about the day President Trump was nearly killed just across the parking lot. The handcrafted displays—built by Jones and his family—drew plenty of interest from visitors, but his mind was on what happened nearby that day.
“My youngest boy was here with my mother-in-law. They were right here,” he said, acknowledging how the rally could have ended differently for his loved ones. He pointed over to the site, noting just how close the shooter got to the President without being detected.
Jones said the biggest mystery for him is how the would-be assassin, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks, was able to reach the rooftop without being stopped. “How does a kid with a ladder and a rifle not get noticed with thousands of people and police?” he wondered. “That’s the big question. You know, that’s why I think there’s no way he acted alone.”
Asked about early reports that the roof was too steep to patrol, Jones shook his head. “Yeah, that was bogus,” he said. “That was an excuse. You can see the slope—it’s not that steep.” Locals measured the distance to the President at just over 100 yards, an easy shot even for a novice.
Jones is open to the idea that investigators might not be hiding facts but simply waiting for clarity. “I think that our government now and the FBI are very, very transparent,” he said. “But you know, if they don’t have full answers yet, maybe they’re not releasing information until they know everything. I’m saying, it’s still ongoing—they’re still processing everything.”
Looking toward the fairgrounds, Jones reflected on the event. “Yeah, that blows my mind,” he said. “That’s why I think that he didn’t act alone.”