CHARLOTTE, N.C. — There are still many unanswered questions about the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump. All eyes, right now are on security and protocols.
Former Mecklenburg County Sheriff Irwin Carmichael said a lot goes into securing events like these.
“Normally the rule of thumb is, is anywhere you can physically see has to be secured in one way or another, especially when it's an open-air event,” Carmichael told WCNC Charlotte's Jesse Pierre.
At political events like the campaign rally in Pennsylvania, Carmichael said the Secret Service is the lead, working alongside other agencies and providing them assistance.
Carmichael added the plans are very detailed and the Secret Service would normally arrive ahead of the event and scope out the venue. They look at every area, including nearby buildings and identify areas where a potential threat can come from.
“If they asked us, 'Hey, we need you to take care of the outer perimeter,' then we're going to do that,” Carmichael said. “They're going to say, from 100 yards to 200 yards, we want to take you to secure that perimeter there. And that’s what we are going to do.”
Although Carmichael said the threat was quickly taken out, the rally was not properly secured.
“You see that the sniper was able to instantly take him out. That tells you this person was entirely too close. There was a failure in the protocol and in the system,” Carmichael said. “They should have already known there was a building, there was the rooftop there that had a direct line with the former president. This person was able to access that roof and strike several people with that fire with his weapon. And they have drones out, they have all this technology. It just wasn't covered that day.”
Retired Army Officer Steve Russell, who led one of the biggest missions in Iraq, said several things went right in the aftermath of the shooting.
Steve Russell, the commanding officer responsible for capturing Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003, shared some insight with WCNC Charlotte. He said that while many are in a rush to point out what went wrong, it's important to point out the quick actions of Secret Service agents and snipers that saved Trump's life.
"They immediately went in to shield the president," Russell said. "They sacrificed their own bodies to place them on top of the former president. They did everything they were trained to do. And then, when the threat was eliminated, they immediately got him evacuated. So there were a lot of good things."
Russell said the quick actions of snipers potentially saved others.
"It sounds like seven or so [shots] and then you hear a delay, and then three more shots," Russell said. "The difference between that was not very long. The snipers were able to get on the shooter. They found him, they acquired him and killed him. Had they not, we know that many others could have been injured or killed, including the former president."
Russell, who also served in Congress, explained how the shooter could have been in a position to expose a vulnerable spot at the Pennsylvania rally.
"You also had some retaining walls and other things that were proximate," Russell said. "It was an adjacent building in the industrial area. There would have been a number of ways that you could have accessed the roof. It was not an area that was a part of the rally, although it was proximate."
Carmichael is the founder of the Martial Arts Training Institute and also teaches concealed carry courses and active shooter training. He said in outdoor events like the rally, benches and chairs can help provide cover. In general, he said whenever you go into any location know where your exits are and prepare for the worst-case scenarios.
Russell is currently president of the humanitarian organization JAARS based in Waxhaw.
He authored a first-hand account of the capture of Hussein in his memoir, "We Got Him."
Contact Jesse Pierre at jpierrepet@wcnc.com or follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.