A Pennsylvania man, Thomas Crooks, who recently attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump during a rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds, was revealed to have been rejected from his high school’s rifle team due to his poor shooting skills and inappropriate behavior. Crooks, 20, fatally shot a Trump supporter and injured two others before being neutralized by the Secret Service.
According to two former classmates from Bethel Park High School, Crooks had tried out for the rifle team a few years prior to the assassination attempt. The team at Bethel Park used Anschutz single-shot rifles with peep sights and .22-caliber ammunition. The shooting range at the school consisted of seven lanes, with Crooks firing from the closest lane to the right wall. However, his aim was so off that he missed the targets by nearly 20 feet, hitting the left wall instead.
Jameson Murphy, one of the former classmates, described Crooks as a “terrible shot” and recalled how he was unable to make the team after the first day due to his comically bad performance. The second classmate added that Crooks made inappropriate and crass jokes during the tryouts, which raised concerns among both students and the coach. Given the use of firearms in a school setting, such behavior was deemed inappropriate and potentially dangerous.
The rejection from the rifle team sheds light on Crooks’ lack of skill and questionable behavior with firearms. It also highlights the concerns raised by those who interacted with him, including the coach who had experience training Navy marksmen. While the exact nature of Crooks’ inappropriate comments remains undisclosed, they were deemed concerning in the context of a school environment.
