Sheriff weighs in on security breach, shooting at Trump rally
NEW PHILADELPHIA (WJER) (July 18, 2024) – As the nation continues to scrutinize the apparent security lapse that resulted in the former president being shot at, Tuscarawas County Sheriff Orvis Campbell is sharing his take.
He calls the fact that the gunman was able to climb up onto a rooftop without being undetected ‘shocking.’
“It’s basic ballistics. If you’re going to shoot something from far away, you’re going to want the high ground so we would have to believe that anybody that could make a shot from that distance, which isn’t that far, would choose the high ground it’s much easier to do.”
The gunfire struck and killed a 50-year-old Pennsylvania man attending the Saturday afternoon rally and injured two others.
“A lot of people don’t realize that the individual that was killed, he was actually in between the shooter and the president. It’s not that the bullet went by the president’s head. It hit that individual before it got to the president because of the way they had the seats laid out.”
Campbell was involved in the security arrangements for two other former presidents when they visited the area and says they had snipers watching over from every angle.
“When they come back around – and they will come back around – Ohio is a battleground state. They will be back to Tuscarawas County. Obviously, we’ll use this as a great lesson for my people to go, ‘remember what took place.’ It’s not going to be the guy who rushes out of the crowd, most likely.”
The Department of Homeland Security is investigating, and hearings in a separate Congressional probe are scheduled to begin Monday.