Honestly, the last couple of years have been a blur of news cycles that felt more like a political thriller than real life. If you've been trying to keep track of who just tried to assassinate Trump, it’s not just one person. There were two distinct major incidents in 2024 that shook the country. Both involved very different men with wildly different backgrounds, but both ended with a Secret Service agent pulling a trigger.
The first was a 20-year-old "loner" from Pennsylvania. The second was a 58-year-old activist with a long criminal record and a strange obsession with the war in Ukraine.
It’s heavy stuff. Let’s break down who they are, what they actually did, and what we know about why they did it.
Thomas Matthew Crooks: The Butler, Pennsylvania Shooter
On July 13, 2024, the world watched in horror as shots rang out during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bullet grazed Donald Trump’s ear, a spectator named Corey Comperatore was tragically killed, and two others were seriously hurt.
The shooter was Thomas Matthew Crooks.
He was 20. Basically a kid from Bethel Park, which is a suburb of Pittsburgh. He graduated from high school in 2022 and had just finished an associate degree in engineering science from the Community College of Allegheny County. People who knew him said he was smart—he even won a $500 "star award" for math and science—but he was also described as an "outcast" who was bullied almost every day.
📖 Related: The Battle of the Chesapeake: Why Washington Should Have Lost
The Day of the Attack
Crooks didn't have a long criminal history. He didn't have a manifest. He didn't even have much of a social media footprint, which is pretty weird for someone his age.
On the day of the rally, he bought a five-foot ladder and 50 rounds of ammunition. He drove to the rally in his father’s car, which had improvised explosive devices in the trunk. He managed to climb onto the roof of a building about 150 yards away from the stage.
He fired eight rounds from an AR-15-style rifle before a Secret Service counter-sniper team killed him. To this day, the FBI says his motive remains a mystery. There were no political rants or suicide notes. Just a quiet kid who, for some reason, decided to commit an act of mass violence.
Ryan Wesley Routh: The West Palm Beach Attempt
Fast forward to September 15, 2024. Trump was golfing at his club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Suddenly, a Secret Service agent spotted a rifle barrel poking through the shrubs near the sixth hole.
That man was Ryan Wesley Routh.
👉 See also: Texas Flash Floods: What Really Happens When a Summer Camp Underwater Becomes the Story
Unlike Crooks, Routh was 58 and had a rap sheet longer than a CVS receipt. He had over 100 criminal counts on his record, including a 2002 felony for possessing a "weapon of mass destruction" (a fully automatic machine gun).
A Strange Motivation
Routh wasn't a "quiet loner." He was an activist. He was deeply obsessed with the war in Ukraine and had even traveled to Kyiv to try and recruit foreign soldiers. He wrote a self-published book where he literally invited Iran to assassinate Trump because of the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.
He spent nearly 12 hours hiding in the bushes with an SKS-style rifle, waiting for Trump to get close. He never actually got a shot off. An agent saw him first and opened fire. Routh fled in a black Nissan Xterra but was caught by police on I-95.
The Trial and Conviction
In September 2025, a federal jury found Ryan Wesley Routh guilty of all charges, including the attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate. During the verdict, he reportedly tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen.
He’s now facing life in prison.
✨ Don't miss: Teamsters Union Jimmy Hoffa: What Most People Get Wrong
What Most People Get Wrong About These Attacks
When you look at who just tried to assassinate Trump, it's easy to want to put them in a box. But the reality is messy.
- Political Leanings: Crooks was a registered Republican, but he had once donated $15 to a progressive group. Routh had been a Democrat, then an Independent, and had even supported Trump in 2016 before turning violently against him.
- Planning: Both men spent weeks or months planning. Crooks practiced at a shooting range and scouted the rally site. Routh tracked Trump’s schedule and even left a "confession" note in a box at a friend's house months before the attempt.
- Security Failures: Both incidents led to massive investigations into the Secret Service. In the Butler case, the "security lapse" was considered a historic failure because the shooter was on an unsecured roof so close to the former president.
Summary of the Perpetrators
| Detail | Thomas Matthew Crooks | Ryan Wesley Routh |
|---|---|---|
| Age | 20 | 58 |
| Location | Butler, PA | West Palm Beach, FL |
| Weapon | AR-15 style rifle | SKS-style rifle |
| Background | Engineering student, no criminal record | Roofer/Activist, 100+ criminal counts |
| Outcome | Killed at the scene | Convicted in 2025, facing life in prison |
Actionable Insights: Staying Informed and Safe
In an era of high-stakes political violence, it’s easy to get lost in the noise. Here is how you can actually process this kind of news:
- Check the Source: For these cases, the most reliable info comes from official Department of Justice (DOJ) press releases and FBI briefings.
- Avoid Early Rumors: In both the Crooks and Routh cases, the first 48 hours were filled with false reports about their motives and "accomplices." Wait for verified evidence.
- Understand the Legal Process: The Routh trial in 2025 showed how the legal system handles political violence—through federal indictments and public trials, not just internet speculation.
If you want to understand the full scope of these events, you can read the House Task Force report on the July 13th assassination attempt, which details exactly how the security perimeter was breached. Staying informed means looking at the facts of the investigation, not just the headlines.
The story of who just tried to assassinate Trump is a grim reminder of how volatile things have become. Whether it was the "loner" kid from Pennsylvania or the radicalized activist in Florida, the details show two very different paths to the same dark destination.