Trump Shooter Was Reportedly Rejected From High School Rifle Team Because He Was a Bad Shot

The individual identified as the shooter at Donald Trump's rally in Butler, Pennsylvania reportedly failed to make his high school rifle team because he was such a bad shot.

20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who fired eight shots at Trump on Saturday, July 13 and seemingly only grazed him once, graduated high school in 2022 and became a registered Republican the day he turned 18. As reported by CBS News, former classmate Jameson Myers said that Crooks tried out for Bethel Park High School's varsity rifle team in freshman year but failed to make the team.

Myers did not directly comment Crooks' skill, but said he didn't think he was "capable of anything I've seen him do in the last few days." Rifle club head Jameson Murphy, however, told the New York Post that Crooks missed every shot when he tried out for the team. "He tried out … and was such a comically bad shot, he was unable to make the team and left after the first day,” Murphy said.

A second classmate, who chose to remain anonymous, said Crooks "couldn't shoot at all." In fact, they said the coach of the team expressed concern over his behavior. We noticed a few things Thomas said and how he interacted with other people … He said some things that were kind of concerning," they shared. "You know, obviously, we’re using guns in a school setting, so you need to be very careful in that regard. He made some crass jokes that weren’t appropriate when there are firearms in the school setting."

More information about Crooks, who was shot and killed by a Secret Service agent moments after opening fire on Trump, has been steadily coming out since the attempted assassination on Saturday. TMZ reports that footage recorded from his time in high school showed that Crooks was a victim of bullying.