James Copenhaver, a 70-something-year-old man injured during a failed assassination attempt on then-presidential candidate Donald Trump at the Butler Farm Show complex outside Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024, has died due to complications from his injuries. Copenhaver was one of several people shot by would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks, who fired shots after scaling a building's roof near the event site. The House Republican Conference and journalist Ken Silva confirmed his death, noting that he had been dealing with permanent physical injuries including bullet fragments remaining in his body since the incident.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-24,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
James Copenhaver, a 76-year-old man who was shot during an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, has died. Copenhaver was one of three people injured that day; he suffered gunshot wounds to his left arm and abdomen, leaving him with life-altering injuries and walking with a cane. The shooting occurred when Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old gunman, fired from a nearby rooftop. Copenhaver died on Wednesday at Allegheny Health Network’s West Penn Hospital in Pittsburgh. His lawyer, Joseph Feldman, confirmed that he passed away surrounded by loved ones and stated that the family was deeply grateful for the support they received over the past two years.
Written for “Trump Rally Shooting Victim Dies” on 2026-10-08,
grounded in this article and the 10 other(s) covering the same event.
James Copenhaver, of Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, who was wounded in a failed assassination attempt on President Donald Trump in 2024, has died, according to several reports.
uncertain
who → wound → reports
Copenhaver, in his mid-70s, was one of several people who attempted assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks shot at the Butler Farm Show complex outside Butler, PennsylvaniaCopenhaver, in his mid-70s, was one of several people who attempted assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks shot at the Butler Farm Show complex outside Butler, Pennsylvania, after Crooks scaled the roof of a nearby glass manufacturing building and took aim at the then-presidential candidate.
asserted
Crooks → attempt → candidate
A person who answered a phone number connected to Copenhaver’s family directed Fox News Digital to a Pittsburgh-area law firm for confirmation and further comment.
asserted
who → answer → confirmation
The House Republican Conference posted an obituary for Copenhaver on social media, saying he had died Thursday and that lawmakers were “deeply saddened.”
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lawmakers → post → media
“Jim endured unimaginable hardship with strength and perseverance.
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Jim → endure → strength
We join his family and loved ones in mourning his loss and praying for them during this difficult time.
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We → join → time
May he rest in peace,” the caucus said in a statement.
uncertain
caucus → rest → statement
Ken Silva, a journalist who wrote a book about the assassination attempt, wrote on his website that a person close to Copenhaver’s family also confirmed Copenhaver had died and had been dealing with permanent injuries, including bullet fragments still lodged in his body.
asserted
Copenhaver → write → body
David Dutch was also wounded in the shooting but survived.
asserted
Dutch → wound → shooting
Butler County firefighter Corey Comperatore was shot and killed in the bleachers behind Trump’s dais that day.
asserted
Comperatore → shoot → dais
Speaking to Pittsburgh’s KDKA in 2025, Copenhaver said he stood to look at the jumbotron behind him as Trump spoke.
asserted
Trump → speak → him
“Next thing I know, my sleeve has been yanked,” he said.
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he → know → ?
“I could see a portion of it going by pretty fast, and I heard ‘pew.’
uncertain
I → see → pew
I heard it, and I didn’t realize at the time that I had gotten shot.”
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asserted
Report → hear → news
It didn’t knock me over, but I didn’t want to stand anymore,” he told the station.
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he → knock → station
A lawsuit Copenhaver filed against the United States earlier this year alleged he was also required to undergo multiple surgeries.
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he → file → surgeries
Mayor Jondavid Longo of nearby Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania — who spoke at the Butler rally — mourned Copenhaver’s reported death Thursday.
“[Copenhaver] survived that day, but he never fully recovered from the wounds.
asserted
he → speak → wounds
For two years he lived with surgeries, remaining fragments, and pain that never left him.
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that → live → him
Those of us who were there that day have never forgotten Corey Comperatore, David Dutch, or Jim,” Longo said in a statement on X.
“Butler County still carries that afternoon.
asserted
County → forget → afternoon
May he rest in peace.
uncertain
he → rest → peace
The attack triggered intense scrutiny of the Secret Service after investigations uncovered breakdowns in planning, communication and security around the rally site.
asserted
investigations → trigger → site
Then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned less than two weeks later, taking responsibility for the security lapse.
asserted
Cheatle → resign → lapse
A subsequent bipartisan House task force concluded the Butler attack was preventable and identified failures in planning, execution and leadership.
asserted
attack → conclude → planning
One of the Republican lawmakers on that task force, Rep. Carlos Gimenez of Florida, climbed onto the roof Crooks used to take aim at Trump and later told Fox News Digital he was incredulous at how easy it was to scale after Cheatle had cited the roof’s slope in explaining why it was not secured.
asserted
it → climb → slope
Six Secret Service agents were later suspended without pay in connection with the failures.
asserted
agents → suspend → failures
Trump returned to Butler in October 2024, less than three months after the assassination attempt, to hold another rally at the same site and honor Comperatore.
asserted
Trump → return → Comperatore
Trump’s raised fist and mouthing of the word “fight” became a lasting image of the assassination attempt that he used throughout his successful campaign to become the first president since Grover Cleveland to serve two nonconsecutive terms.
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he → raise → terms
This is a developing story.
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This → develop → ?
The Aporia
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