Jim Copenhaver, Wounded at Trump's Butler Rally in 2024, Dies at 76
The Army veteran was shot in the arm and abdomen when a gunman opened fire on Donald Trump's Pennsylvania rally. His family says he died Wednesday surrounded by loved ones.
Jim Copenhaver, one of the spectators shot during the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt on Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, has died, his family said Thursday. He was 76.
Copenhaver died Wednesday "surrounded by his loved ones," according to a statement released by Joseph A. Feldman, an attorney for the family. The statement did not give a cause of death. The family had described his wounds from the shooting as "life-altering."
Copenhaver was standing in the crowd when a 20-year-old gunman, Thomas Crooks, opened fire from the roof of a building outside the rally grounds. Copenhaver was hit twice, first in the triceps and then in the abdomen. The wounds left him with nerve damage, and surgeons had to remove part of his colon.
Months later he told NBC News that he had lost 30 pounds and needed a cane to walk. He said he did not even realize he had been hit until he saw part of his sleeve "go away." "I mean, I heard it distinctly," he said. "I turn around to my friend and I said, 'I think I was shot.' And that's when I got the second one."
His family's statement described military service as a "defining" part of his life. "As a veteran, he proudly served our nation in the armed forces, and his love of country never wavered," it said. "James was a true American patriot who believed deeply in the freedoms and ideals upon which this nation was founded, and he embodied the very best traits of our great nation." When he was discharged from Allegheny Health Network after the shooting, the family thanked the public for its support in the wake of what they called a "horrible, senseless, and unnecessary act of violence."
The Butler shooting killed Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old former volunteer fire chief who died shielding his family. Copenhaver and David Dutch were the two spectators seriously wounded. Trump's right ear was grazed by a bullet or fragment, and he was not seriously hurt. A Secret Service counter-sniper killed Crooks within seconds. Investigators interviewed his relatives, neighbors, teachers and classmates, but no motive was ever established.
The shooting prompted the resignation of then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and a string of congressional and internal reviews of how a gunman was able to get onto an unsecured roof within range of the stage. Earlier this month, the FBI released about 600 pages of files on the case, including details on how Crooks got the rifle he used.
House Republicans posted condolences on their official X account after news of Copenhaver's death. "Jim endured unimaginable hardship with strength and perseverance," the post said. "We join his family and loved ones in mourning his loss and praying for them during this difficult time. May he rest in peace."
