The AI Files · The 2024 Butler and West Palm Beach attempts on Donald Trump’s life, Secret Service and congressional failure reviews, Iran-linked foiled plots in the public record, and major conspiracy claims measured against the critical path — through late October 2026 research · plain reading edition

Assassination attempts: every entry

All 51 entries of the guide, grouped by period and case, each with its bottom line and its sources. This page needs no JavaScript. The interactive guide adds the story in 20 chapters, the people, the timeline, the theories, the 15 checked claims and the media.

Threat backdrop 2020–24

Threat backdrop

Why Iran appears in other dockets

Other thin threats

Record · Reported

Critical-path / claims visual motif.
Critical-path / claims visual motif. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Local cases and tips that never became Butler.

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Bottom line Reported

Noise floor exists; bar for ‘attempt’ stays high.

What the record can’t settle

Many USSS cases never become public.

Sources

  1. Newsweek: Ozark County complaint — Johnetta Parsons alleged Trump threat (2026) Local firearm-theft case with alleged texts; USSS notified; no federal charges reported at publication — thin record.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Outdoor rallies as soft targets

Record · Reported

Outdoor political event stand-in for the Butler rally context — no wound imagery.
Outdoor political event stand-in for the Butler rally context — no wound imagery. Prior AI Files federal-election pool · Re-encoded prior freely licensed asset

Campaign optics versus perimeter science.

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Bottom line Reported

Democracy’s open events are hard to harden.

What the record can’t settle

Not every outdoor rally is equally exposed.

Sources

  1. Contemporaneous reporting: Butler Farm Show rally July 13 2024 Outdoor campaign event; former president as protectee.
  2. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Butler 13 Jul 2024

Butler day

Thirteen July

Eight shots from the roof

Record · Established

Outdoor political event stand-in for the Butler rally context — no wound imagery.
Outdoor political event stand-in for the Butler rally context — no wound imagery. Prior AI Files federal-election pool · Re-encoded prior freely licensed asset

Crooks fired toward the stage with an AR-platform rifle.

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Bottom line Established

The attack was brief, close, and real.

What the record can’t settle

We avoid graphic wound detail.

Sources

  1. FBI: eight rounds fired; additional unfired rounds in weapon/vehicle Ballistic accounting used against second-shooter theories.
  2. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.
  3. FBI / DOJ contemporaneous statements on Butler investigation (Jul 2024–) Opening as assassination attempt; later lone-actor conclusion via leadership briefings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Who was hit

Record · Established

Funeral/memorial imagery — respect for Butler’s dead; no gore.
Funeral/memorial imagery — respect for Butler’s dead; no gore. Prior JFK guide pool · Freely licensed via prior guide

Trump’s ear; Comperatore killed; two spectators critically wounded.

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Bottom line Established

Real casualties falsify staging.

What the record can’t settle

Medical privacy limits clinical detail.

Sources

  1. AP/local reporting: Corey Comperatore identified as Butler victim Firefighter/father killed shielding family; central to falsifying ‘staged’ claims.
  2. Reporting: David Dutch and James Copenhaver wounded at Butler Two critically wounded spectators; part of casualty record.
  3. AP: FBI confirms Trump was struck by a bullet (Jul 26 2024) FBI: bullet, whole or fragmented, struck ear.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

The counter-sniper ends it

Record · Established

Outdoor political event stand-in for the Butler rally context — no wound imagery.
Outdoor political event stand-in for the Butler rally context — no wound imagery. Prior AI Files federal-election pool · Re-encoded prior freely licensed asset

USSS kills Crooks on the roof within seconds of the engagement.

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Bottom line Established

The protective counter-assault worked after the failure to prevent.

What the record can’t settle

Operator identity is often withheld.

Sources

  1. FBI / DOJ contemporaneous statements on Butler investigation (Jul 2024–) Opening as assassination attempt; later lone-actor conclusion via leadership briefings.
  2. U.S. Secret Service: one-year update after July 13 2024 attempted assassination (Jul 2025) Agency account of reforms and discipline after Butler.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

The fist-raise photograph

Record · Established

Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded).
Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded). Trump Files / U.S. government portrait lineage · Public domain or prior-guide re-encode

A political icon, not a forensic proof.

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Bottom line Established

Memory attached to a picture; the file attaches to bodies and ballistics.

What the record can’t settle

We do not reproduce graphic close-ups.

Sources

  1. Contemporaneous reporting: Butler Farm Show rally July 13 2024 Outdoor campaign event; former president as protectee.
  2. AP/local reporting: Corey Comperatore identified as Butler victim Firefighter/father killed shielding family; central to falsifying ‘staged’ claims.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

The rifle and the family vault

Record · Established

Neutral historic backyard rifle photo from JFK files pool — used only as non-sensational stand-in card art, not a Crooks likeness.
Neutral historic backyard rifle photo from JFK files pool — used only as non-sensational stand-in card art, not a Crooks likeness. Prior JFK guide (Wikimedia lineage) · Freely licensed via prior guide

Father-controlled access per FBI briefing.

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Bottom line Established

Access ≠ accomplice.

What the record can’t settle

Family privacy and incomplete public inventories.

Sources

  1. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.
  2. FBI: eight rounds fired; additional unfired rounds in weapon/vehicle Ballistic accounting used against second-shooter theories.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Ear wound politics

Record · Established

Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded).
Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded). Trump Files / U.S. government portrait lineage · Public domain or prior-guide re-encode

From denialism to FBI confirmation.

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Forensics > meme war.

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Cosmetic aftermath photos vary.

Sources

  1. AP: FBI confirms Trump was struck by a bullet (Jul 26 2024) FBI: bullet, whole or fragmented, struck ear.
  2. NBC News: FBI confirms bullet struck Trump’s ear (Jul 2024) Second account of FBI ear statement.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Editorial hard stop on gore

Record · Established

Funeral/memorial imagery — respect for Butler’s dead; no gore.
Funeral/memorial imagery — respect for Butler’s dead; no gore. Prior JFK guide pool · Freely licensed via prior guide

We describe outcomes without spectacle.

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Bottom line Established

Dignity is a sourcing choice.

What the record can’t settle

Some external links may be more graphic.

Sources

  1. AI Files edition note — assassination attempts checked 24 Oct 2026 This guide’s edition stamp.
  2. AP/local reporting: Corey Comperatore identified as Butler victim Firefighter/father killed shielding family; central to falsifying ‘staged’ claims.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Say his name

Record · Established

Funeral/memorial imagery — respect for Butler’s dead; no gore.
Funeral/memorial imagery — respect for Butler’s dead; no gore. Prior JFK guide pool · Freely licensed via prior guide

Corey Comperatore is the anti-staging fact.

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Bottom line Established

Human cost is not optional context.

What the record can’t settle

Family statements are grief, not forensics.

Sources

  1. AP/local reporting: Corey Comperatore identified as Butler victim Firefighter/father killed shielding family; central to falsifying ‘staged’ claims.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Security failures

Perimeter, roofs, radios

The unguarded AGR sight line

Record · Established

Elevated building / line-of-sight structural cousin (Dallas depository photo) used as AGR geometry stand-in — different event.
Elevated building / line-of-sight structural cousin (Dallas depository photo) used as AGR geometry stand-in — different event. Wikimedia/prior JFK guide pool · Freely licensed via prior JFK guide re-encode

The stage could be seen from roofs outside the secure perimeter.

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Bottom line Established

A known risk area was left soft.

What the record can’t settle

Exact minute-by-minute advance emails are still partly redacted.

Sources

  1. Task Force / OIG: American Glass Research complex sight lines at Butler AGR roofs and fence-line crowd outside secure perimeter.
  2. House Task Force on Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump — Final Report Bipartisan task force: Butler preventable; Florida shows successful interdiction.
  3. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Rangefinder, roof, and a missed drone

Record · Established

Elevated building / line-of-sight structural cousin (Dallas depository photo) used as AGR geometry stand-in — different event.
Elevated building / line-of-sight structural cousin (Dallas depository photo) used as AGR geometry stand-in — different event. Wikimedia/prior JFK guide pool · Freely licensed via prior JFK guide re-encode

Locals saw a suspicious man; a drone flight went undetected.

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There were chances to disrupt him before he fired.

What the record can’t settle

We do not have Crooks’s real-time intent from the drone video alone.

Sources

  1. Senate/Task Force: Crooks observed with rangefinder before attack Suspicious-person reports ~25+ minutes prior per oversight.
  2. DHS OIG: Crooks drone flight undetected — operator/equipment failures Missed detection opportunity before shooting.
  3. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Radios that did not save the stage walk

Record · Established

Congressional hearing room imagery — stand-in for post-Butler oversight.
Congressional hearing room imagery — stand-in for post-Butler oversight. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Suspicious-person traffic did not pull the protectee in time.

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Information existed; the protective decision loop failed.

What the record can’t settle

Some radio logs remain redacted.

Sources

  1. House Task Force on Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump — Final Report Bipartisan task force: Butler preventable; Florida shows successful interdiction.
  2. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.
  3. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Local snipers looking the wrong way

Record · Established

Elevated building / line-of-sight structural cousin (Dallas depository photo) used as AGR geometry stand-in — different event.
Elevated building / line-of-sight structural cousin (Dallas depository photo) used as AGR geometry stand-in — different event. Wikimedia/prior JFK guide pool · Freely licensed via prior JFK guide re-encode

Responsibility confusion on AGR roofs.

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Bottom line Established

Misunderstood lanes created a blind roof.

What the record can’t settle

Not every local officer failed equally.

Sources

  1. Task Force: local sniper teams’ misunderstood responsibilities Local teams believed overwatch of crowd, not AGR roofs.
  2. House Task Force on Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump — Final Report Bipartisan task force: Butler preventable; Florida shows successful interdiction.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Denied assets before Butler

Record · Reported

Congressional hearing room imagery — stand-in for post-Butler oversight.
Congressional hearing room imagery — stand-in for post-Butler oversight. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Senate findings on requests refused.

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Bottom line Reported

Resources were a pre-condition failure.

What the record can’t settle

Full request logs not all public.

Sources

  1. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

No joint communications room

Record · Established

Documents on a table — reviews and reports.
Documents on a table — reviews and reports. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

OIG’s structural finding.

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Bottom line Established

Architecture of the command post mattered.

What the record can’t settle

Some locals used separate channels by habit.

Sources

  1. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Seeing the problem, not blocking it

Record · Established

Elevated building / line-of-sight structural cousin (Dallas depository photo) used as AGR geometry stand-in — different event.
Elevated building / line-of-sight structural cousin (Dallas depository photo) used as AGR geometry stand-in — different event. Wikimedia/prior JFK guide pool · Freely licensed via prior JFK guide re-encode

AGR line-of-sight was identified and not mitigated.

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Bottom line Established

Known vulnerability, open path.

What the record can’t settle

Exact mitigation options debated by practitioners.

Sources

  1. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.
  2. Task Force / OIG: American Glass Research complex sight lines at Butler AGR roofs and fence-line crowd outside secure perimeter.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Threat intel not shared down

Record · Established

Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters.
Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Pittsburgh leadership and site agents under-informed.

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Bottom line Established

Strategic intel failed to become site staffing.

What the record can’t settle

Underlying intel details redacted.

Sources

  1. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.
  2. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Steelman: ‘the system failed him’

Steelman · Established

Documents on a table — reviews and reports.
Documents on a table — reviews and reports. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Strongest non-conspiratorial failure case.

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Failure can be devastating without being a plot.

What the record can’t settle

Steelman is not a moral excuse.

Sources

  1. House Task Force on Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump — Final Report Bipartisan task force: Butler preventable; Florida shows successful interdiction.
  2. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Shock & oversight Jul–Aug 2024

Aftermath

Cheatle, hearings, FOIA

Bullet, not ‘just glass’

Record · Established

Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded).
Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded). Trump Files / U.S. government portrait lineage · Public domain or prior-guide re-encode

FBI: a bullet whole or fragmented struck the ear.

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Forensic statement undercuts minimize-the-wound talk.

What the record can’t settle

The statement does not litigate every online photo crop.

Sources

  1. AP: FBI confirms Trump was struck by a bullet (Jul 26 2024) FBI: bullet, whole or fragmented, struck ear.
  2. NBC News: FBI confirms bullet struck Trump’s ear (Jul 2024) Second account of FBI ear statement.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Cheatle resigns

Record · Established

Congressional hearing room imagery — stand-in for post-Butler oversight.
Congressional hearing room imagery — stand-in for post-Butler oversight. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

The Director falls after the House hearing.

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Bottom line Established

Leadership accountability began with a resignation, not mass firings.

What the record can’t settle

Resignation is not itself a finding of criminal intent.

Sources

  1. AP/major outlets: Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigns after Butler hearing (Jul 2024) Resignation after congressional testimony; cite contemporaneous wire reporting.
  2. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

FOIA heat without a second shooter

Record · Reported

Documents on a table — reviews and reports.
Documents on a table — reviews and reports. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Document fights are not secret confessions.

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Bottom line Reported

More pages ≠ automatic conspiracy.

What the record can’t settle

We have not read every released PDF page-by-page.

Sources

  1. Fox: Judicial Watch FOIA fight over Butler FBI files (2025–26) Document-release controversy; not itself evidence of conspiracy.
  2. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Iran-linked plots

Merchant & Shakeri

Asif Merchant’s recruitment plot

Record · Established

Charging / Justice Department paperwork visual for Iran-linked dockets.
Charging / Justice Department paperwork visual for Iran-linked dockets. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Iran-directed murder-for-hire case — not Crooks.

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Bottom line Established

A real foreign plot docket exists — separately.

What the record can’t settle

Conviction ≠ Crooks foreign control.

Sources

  1. Reuters: US charges man with alleged Iran ties in foiled plot (Aug 2024) Initial charging story; Trump among discussed targets.
  2. Reuters: Pakistani convicted of plotting to kill Trump over Soleimani (Mar 2026) Asif Merchant conviction — Iran-directed murder-for-hire recruitment.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Farhad Shakeri still at large

Record · Alleged

Charging / Justice Department paperwork visual for Iran-linked dockets.
Charging / Justice Department paperwork visual for Iran-linked dockets. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Charged IRGC-order narrative; defendant believed in Iran.

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Bottom line Alleged

Charging document ≠ captured conspirator beside Crooks.

What the record can’t settle

Allegations await trial if he is ever present.

Sources

  1. AP: Unsealed charges reveal thwarted Iranian plot to kill Trump (Nov 2024) Farhad Shakeri charged; believed in Iran; at large.
  2. POLITICO: Iran ordered operative to assassinate Trump before election (Nov 2024) SDNY murder-for-hire / material-support charges summary.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Do not merge the Iran cases with Butler

Record · Established

White House exterior — threat-backdrop era.
White House exterior — threat-backdrop era. Trump Files / U.S. government pool · Public domain or prior re-encode

Separate facts, separate defendants.

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Bottom line Established

Foreign plots can be real without explaining Crooks.

What the record can’t settle

Classified intel may exceed the public file.

Sources

  1. Public record: Soleimani strike (Jan 2020) as Iran retaliation motive in DOJ plot cases Context for Merchant/Shakeri charging theories — not a Crooks finding.
  2. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.
  3. Reuters: Pakistani convicted of plotting to kill Trump over Soleimani (Mar 2026) Asif Merchant conviction — Iran-directed murder-for-hire recruitment.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Florida 15 Sep 2024

Florida attempt

Golf course interdiction

Lying in wait on the golf course

Record · Established

Golf course imagery from Trump Files assets — locus of the September 2024 Florida attempt.
Golf course imagery from Trump Files assets — locus of the September 2024 Florida attempt. Trump Files site assets · Prior site asset re-encode

Routh brought a rifle to the fence line.

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This was a second real attempt, foiled before shots at the protectee.

What the record can’t settle

Prior Ukraine-related biography is out of war-scope here.

Sources

  1. DOJ/FBI: Routh arrest after West Palm Beach golf-course incident (Sep 15 2024) Agent Robert Fercano spots rifle; pursuit and arrest.
  2. Court/prosecution descriptions of Routh’s SKS-style rifle and obliterated serial Firearm facts from charging/conviction record.
  3. DOJ: Jury convicts Ryan Wesley Routh of attempted assassination Five-count conviction including §351(c) attempted assassination.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

The agent sees the barrel

Record · Established

Golf course imagery from Trump Files assets — locus of the September 2024 Florida attempt.
Golf course imagery from Trump Files assets — locus of the September 2024 Florida attempt. Trump Files site assets · Prior site asset re-encode

Interdiction that Butler lacked.

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Bottom line Established

A seen weapon + pursuit beat an unguarded roof.

What the record can’t settle

Trump was not struck in Florida.

Sources

  1. DOJ/FBI: Routh arrest after West Palm Beach golf-course incident (Sep 15 2024) Agent Robert Fercano spots rifle; pursuit and arrest.
  2. House Task Force: West Palm Beach shows properly executed protective measures Contrast case to Butler failures.
  3. DOJ: Jury convicts Ryan Wesley Routh of attempted assassination Five-count conviction including §351(c) attempted assassination.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Pro se and guilty on five counts

Record · Established

Federal courthouse — Routh trial and sentencing.
Federal courthouse — Routh trial and sentencing. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Routh represented himself; the jury convicted.

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A jury, not a tweet thread, adjudicated Florida.

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Appeal issues may refine but have not vacated the conviction as of edition check.

Sources

  1. DOJ: Jury convicts Ryan Wesley Routh of attempted assassination Five-count conviction including §351(c) attempted assassination.
  2. Reporting: Routh represented himself at trial Pro se defense; jury convicted all counts.
  3. Reuters: Routh sentenced to life for golf-course attempt (Feb 4 2026) Wire on pro se trial and life sentence.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Life plus seven years

Record · Established

Federal courthouse — Routh trial and sentencing.
Federal courthouse — Routh trial and sentencing. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Judge Cannon’s February 2026 judgment.

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Florida ended in a life sentence, not a mystery.

What the record can’t settle

BOP designation details are secondary.

Sources

  1. DOJ: Ryan Wesley Routh sentenced to life (Feb 4 2026) Life + 84 months consecutive on firearm-in-furtherance; Judge Cannon.
  2. Judgment: United States v. Routh, 9:24-cr-80116 (S.D. Fla.) — life sentence Primary judgment document: Counts 1–5; life + 84 months consecutive.
  3. The Hill: Ryan Routh appeals life sentence Notice of appeal reporting.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Why Florida is the control case

Record · Established

Golf course imagery from Trump Files assets — locus of the September 2024 Florida attempt.
Golf course imagery from Trump Files assets — locus of the September 2024 Florida attempt. Trump Files site assets · Prior site asset re-encode

Same year, different outcome.

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Doctrine can work when executed.

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Different site geometry matters.

Sources

  1. House Task Force: West Palm Beach shows properly executed protective measures Contrast case to Butler failures.
  2. House Task Force on Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump — Final Report Bipartisan task force: Butler preventable; Florida shows successful interdiction.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

What Routh was convicted of

Record · Established

Federal courthouse — Routh trial and sentencing.
Federal courthouse — Routh trial and sentencing. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

§351(c) and firearms counts.

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Black-letter crimes, jury-found.

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Sentencing rationale opinions may add color later.

Sources

  1. 18 U.S.C. § 351 — presidential/major-candidate assassination statutes Black-letter offense charged against Routh.
  2. Judgment: United States v. Routh, 9:24-cr-80116 (S.D. Fla.) — life sentence Primary judgment document: Counts 1–5; life + 84 months consecutive.
  3. DOJ: Jury convicts Ryan Wesley Routh of attempted assassination Five-count conviction including §351(c) attempted assassination.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Ukraine-war hard stop

Record · Established

Golf course imagery from Trump Files assets — locus of the September 2024 Florida attempt.
Golf course imagery from Trump Files assets — locus of the September 2024 Florida attempt. Trump Files site assets · Prior site asset re-encode

Biography ≠ a war chapter.

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Scope control prevents a second topic takeover.

What the record can’t settle

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Sources

  1. Reporting: Routh’s prior Ukraine-related activity (biographical — not this guide’s war scope) Mention only as public biographical/motive color; Ukraine-war hard stop.
  2. AI Files edition note — assassination attempts checked 24 Oct 2026 This guide’s edition stamp.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Appeal does not equal innocence claim proven

Record · Reported

Federal courthouse — Routh trial and sentencing.
Federal courthouse — Routh trial and sentencing. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Notice of appeal is procedural.

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What the record can’t settle

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Sources

  1. The Hill: Ryan Routh appeals life sentence Notice of appeal reporting.
  2. DOJ: Ryan Wesley Routh sentenced to life (Feb 4 2026) Life + 84 months consecutive on firearm-in-furtherance; Judge Cannon.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Reviews & trials 2024–25

Reviews & discipline

Task Force, Senate, suspensions

House Task Force: preventable

Record · Established

Documents on a table — reviews and reports.
Documents on a table — reviews and reports. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

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Preventable ≠ proven intentional stand-down.

What the record can’t settle

Task Force is congressional, not a criminal verdict.

Sources

  1. House Task Force on Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump — Final Report Bipartisan task force: Butler preventable; Florida shows successful interdiction.
  2. House Task Force: West Palm Beach shows properly executed protective measures Contrast case to Butler failures.
  3. Congress.gov: Task Force on the Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump Committee landing for hearings and final report.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Senate report: denials and weak discipline

Record · Established

Documents on a table — reviews and reports.
Documents on a table — reviews and reports. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Paul’s July 2025 final report.

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What the record can’t settle

Partisan chair authorship — read alongside Task Force/OIG.

Sources

  1. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.
  2. Senate examination of USSS planning/security failures (GovInfo) Preliminary/oversight product on Butler planning failures.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Six suspensions, few firings

Record · Established

Congressional hearing room imagery — stand-in for post-Butler oversight.
Congressional hearing room imagery — stand-in for post-Butler oversight. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

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Some discipline happened; mass accountability did not.

What the record can’t settle

Names of the six are not all public.

Sources

  1. ABC News: Six Secret Service agents suspended over Butler (Jul 2025) Reports 10–42 day suspensions without pay.
  2. U.S. Secret Service: one-year update after July 13 2024 attempted assassination (Jul 2025) Agency account of reforms and discipline after Butler.
  3. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

The one-year reforms update

Record · Established

Documents on a table — reviews and reports.
Documents on a table — reviews and reports. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Agency narrative of change after Butler.

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Reforms claims need independent follow-through.

What the record can’t settle

We cannot audit every field office from this page.

Sources

  1. U.S. Secret Service: one-year update after July 13 2024 attempted assassination (Jul 2025) Agency account of reforms and discipline after Butler.
  2. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Closeouts 2025–26

FBI closeout

Alone, no motive

Alone — and still no motive

Record · Established

Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters.
Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

November 2025 investigative closeout.

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Lone actor is the bureau’s public conclusion.

What the record can’t settle

‘Satisfied’ presidential reaction is political color, not science.

Sources

  1. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.
  2. The Hill: FBI finds no motive in Trump assassination attempt probe (Nov 2025) FBI concludes Crooks acted alone without established motive.
  3. NY Post: Trump ‘satisfied’ Crooks acted alone per FBI (Nov 2025) Patel claims president briefed and satisfied; probe pending-inactive.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Devices, foreign email, encryption myths

Record · Established

Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters.
Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Bureau says it got into everything.

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Inaccessibility is not a proven cover-up vector here.

What the record can’t settle

Full raw dumps are not public.

Sources

  1. FBI: claims of inaccessible encrypted Crooks accounts are incorrect Bureau says all accounts accessed, including foreign email.
  2. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

No second shooter

Record · Established

Outdoor political event stand-in for the Butler rally context — no wound imagery.
Outdoor political event stand-in for the Butler rally context — no wound imagery. Prior AI Files federal-election pool · Re-encoded prior freely licensed asset

Water-tower figure identified as state police.

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Bottom line Established

Video ambiguity lost to ballistics accounting.

What the record can’t settle

Amateur video will keep circulating anyway.

Sources

  1. FBI: individual near water tower was Pennsylvania State Police, not second shooter Bureau rejects phantom second-shooter video theories.
  2. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.
  3. FBI: eight rounds fired; additional unfired rounds in weapon/vehicle Ballistic accounting used against second-shooter theories.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Searches of Trump and Biden

Record · Reported

Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters.
Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Early digital traces without a manifesto.

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Curiosity online ≠ a written program.

What the record can’t settle

Full search logs not public.

Sources

  1. FBI: no Crooks manifesto located Motive unknown; searches included Trump and Biden per earlier reporting.
  2. The Hill: FBI finds no motive in Trump assassination attempt probe (Nov 2025) FBI concludes Crooks acted alone without established motive.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Briefing the victim-president

Record · Reported

Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters.
Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Patel’s ‘satisfied’ line.

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Victim briefings are normal; they are not peer review.

What the record can’t settle

We lack a transcript of the briefing.

Sources

  1. NY Post: Trump ‘satisfied’ Crooks acted alone per FBI (Nov 2025) Patel claims president briefed and satisfied; probe pending-inactive.
  2. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Steelman: lonely unexplained violence

Steelman · Established

Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters.
Federal law-enforcement architecture stand-in for the FBI closeout chapters. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Strongest reading of the FBI closeout.

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Bottom line Established

Unsatisfying ≠ incomplete cover-up.

What the record can’t settle

True motive could still emerge from new primary evidence.

Sources

  1. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.
  2. FBI: no Crooks manifesto located Motive unknown; searches included Trump and Biden per earlier reporting.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Inspector general

Missed opportunities

OIG-26-13: missed opportunities

Record · Established

Documents on a table — reviews and reports.
Documents on a table — reviews and reports. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

June 2026 watchdog report.

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Bottom line Established

Independent watchdog = strongest failure narrative after Task Force.

What the record can’t settle

Redactions hide some operational detail.

Sources

  1. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Claims & theories

Staged, inside job, plots

How to read this file

Record · Established

Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded).
Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded). Trump Files / U.S. government portrait lineage · Public domain or prior-guide re-encode

Casualties and court records first; theories second.

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Primary records beat viral clips.

What the record can’t settle

Motive for Crooks may stay unknown.

Sources

  1. AI Files edition note — assassination attempts checked 24 Oct 2026 This guide’s edition stamp.
  2. AP: FBI confirms Trump was struck by a bullet (Jul 26 2024) FBI: bullet, whole or fragmented, struck ear.
  3. DOJ: Ryan Wesley Routh sentenced to life (Feb 4 2026) Life + 84 months consecutive on firearm-in-furtherance; Judge Cannon.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

‘Staged’ is false

Record · False

Funeral/memorial imagery — respect for Butler’s dead; no gore.
Funeral/memorial imagery — respect for Butler’s dead; no gore. Prior JFK guide pool · Freely licensed via prior guide

Death and FBI ballistics leave no honest staging path.

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Bottom line False

False, not ‘unproven.’

What the record can’t settle

Bad-faith actors will ignore casualties anyway.

Sources

  1. AP/local reporting: Corey Comperatore identified as Butler victim Firefighter/father killed shielding family; central to falsifying ‘staged’ claims.
  2. AP: FBI confirms Trump was struck by a bullet (Jul 26 2024) FBI: bullet, whole or fragmented, struck ear.
  3. Reporting: David Dutch and James Copenhaver wounded at Butler Two critically wounded spectators; part of casualty record.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

‘Inside job’ remains unproven

Record · Unproven

Critical-path / claims visual motif.
Critical-path / claims visual motif. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Failures are documented; intentional stand-down is not.

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Bottom line Unproven

Incompetence is not proof of collusion.

What the record can’t settle

Classified material could in theory change this; none has publicly.

Sources

  1. House Task Force on Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump — Final Report Bipartisan task force: Butler preventable; Florida shows successful interdiction.
  2. Fox News: FBI concludes Trump shooter Thomas Crooks acted alone (Nov 2025) Detailed bureau briefing: interviews, devices, no accomplice/manifesto/foreign tie.
  3. Senate HSGAC Chairman Rand Paul final report on USSS failures (Jul 13 2025) Denied resources, communication failures, limited accountability findings.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

‘Democrat plot’ without the evidence

Record · Unproven

Critical-path / claims visual motif.
Critical-path / claims visual motif. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Political claim vs Patel/FBI record.

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Bottom line Unproven

Campaign rhetoric ≠ investigative finding.

What the record can’t settle

New authentic evidence would reopen the rating.

Sources

  1. ABC News: Trump claims Butler was a ‘Democrat Plot’ without evidence (2026) Political claim; Patel testimony: no evidence Crooks speaking to others besides parents.
  2. ABC: Patel Senate testimony — no evidence Crooks speaking to others besides parents (2026) Director testimony undercutting Democrat-plot claim.
  3. The Hill: FBI finds no motive in Trump assassination attempt probe (Nov 2025) FBI concludes Crooks acted alone without established motive.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

How memory stuck to the fist

Record · Reported

Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded).
Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded). Trump Files / U.S. government portrait lineage · Public domain or prior-guide re-encode

Icon first, file later.

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Bottom line Reported

Icons need captions from the record.

What the record can’t settle

Poll crosstabs are sparse.

Sources

  1. Contemporaneous reporting: Butler Farm Show rally July 13 2024 Outdoor campaign event; former president as protectee.
  2. AP/local reporting: Corey Comperatore identified as Butler victim Firefighter/father killed shielding family; central to falsifying ‘staged’ claims.
  3. DHS OIG-26-13: Secret Service missed opportunities to prevent Butler attempt (Jun 30 2026, redacted) Watchdog: drone, joint comms, intel sharing, perimeter, line-of-sight failures.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Nest under The Trump Files

Record · Established

Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded).
Donald Trump — guide hero (prior Trump Files asset, re-encoded). Trump Files / U.S. government portrait lineage · Public domain or prior-guide re-encode

Full guide path; thin nest becomes gateway.

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One deep file, one gateway, no homepage peer card.

What the record can’t settle

Other Trump short cases are out of scope this run.

Sources

  1. The Trump Files hub Parent collection.
  2. Trump Files — assassination attempts short case (gateway) Older short case kept as MAINTAINED RECORD gateway.
  3. AI Files edition note — assassination attempts checked 24 Oct 2026 This guide’s edition stamp.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide

Why JFK is only a layout cousin

Record · Established

Critical-path / claims visual motif.
Critical-path / claims visual motif. Prior AI Files pool · Re-encoded prior asset

Different century, different evidence problems.

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Bottom line Established

Structure ≠ analogy of guilt.

What the record can’t settle

Readers may still free-associate.

Sources

  1. The AI Files — JFK assassination guide (structure exemplar) Different subject; used only as structural exemplar.
  2. AI Files edition note — assassination attempts checked 24 Oct 2026 This guide’s edition stamp.

Back to contents · Open in the interactive guide