BBC:
Questions have swirled about how police officers and agents tasked with securing Donald Trump’s rally allowed the gunman to get as close as he did.
Thomas Matthew Crooks was able to access the roof of a building near the outdoor event at Butler County fairgrounds, Pennsylvania, from where he shot at Trump 130m (430ft) away.
The US Secret Service has since said that they had assigned local police to provide cover for that building.
One crowd member was killed and two others were critically injured. Trump was wounded in the ear.
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said that his agency had relied on local police to help.
He said his agents were responsible for securing inside the perimeter of the fairgrounds, while local police secured the area outside, which included the private building used by the gunman.
The local sheriff’s department referred BBC questions to the state police, which said it was not responsible for the area containing the building.
A spokesman told the BBC that it provided “all resources” requested by the Secret Service, including between 30 and 40 troopers inside perimeter.
Many observers have questioned how security plans broke down to allow the gunman unobstructed access to Trump.
Crowd members said they had spotted the suspect on the roof minutes before the shooting started, while Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe said a local security officer had also spotted him but could not stop him.
The sheriff admitted there had been “a failure” in securing the premises, but said he believed that there was no single party to blame.
