On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray stated that it was unclear whether former President Donald Trump was shot or injured by shrapnel during the assassination attempt.
The gunman opened fire on his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, earlier this month.
Shooting Casualties
The FBI is looking into the July 13 shooting, which killed one rally attendee and serioulsy harmed two others.
These casualties occurred before the shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was shot dead by the Secret Service.
Trump’s Account
With an abrasion to his ear causing blood to appear, Trump was rushed off stage.
According to Trump he was “shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear,” he claimed that night.
Truth Social
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he claimed to have heard “a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin.”
A week following the shooting, the Trump lobby released a doctor’s note from Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson.
Jackson’s Report
Jackson had served as Trump’s White House physician during his term as president.
He stated that Trump suffered a gunfire wound to his right ear that was “less than a quarter of an inch from entering his head, and struck the top of his right ear.”
Shrapnel or Bullet
Jackson stated that Trump is “doing well, and he is recovering as expected.”
Wray, on the other hand, testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that it is not yet known whether Trump’s injury was caused by shrapnel or a bullet.
Kiley’s Questions
“To the best of your understanding, how close did the assassin’s bullet come to killing President Donald Trump?” Rep. Kevin Kiley of California questioned Wray.
Wray responded that he believed that either a piece of shrapnel or a bullet “is what grazed [Trump’s] ear.”
Jordan’s Inquiry
The committee chairman, Rep. Jim Jordan, asked Wray later in the hearing if all eight shots fired by the gunman were accounted for.
Jordan inquired: “We obviously know that Mr. Comperatore lost his life…two other rally goers were injured, seriously injured, and then the one that hit President Trump. Does that account for…were some of these individuals hit multiple times?”
Accounting for Bullets
Jordan continued: “Where did all eight bullets go, is I guess my question.”
Wray stated that he lacked that information and added, “As I said, I think with respect to former President Trump, there’s some question about whether or not it’s a bullet or shrapnel that hit his ear.”
Wray’s Account
Wray continued: “So it’s conceivable, as I sit here right now, I don’t know whether that bullet in addition to, you know, causing the grazing, could have also landed somewhere else.”
“But I believe we’ve accounted for all of the shots in the cartridges.”
Secret Service
The FBI was not part of security for the rally and thus has not gotten a similar degree of attention as the Secret Service.
Kimberly Cheatle resigned as the organization’s director on Tuesday, a day after she was questioned by legislators about the attempted assasination.
Cheatle’s Responsibility
Cheatle stated that she accepts “full responsibility for the security lapse” that resulted in the shooting in an email to staff.
Wray on Wednesday said the FBI would “work tirelessly to get to the bottom of what happened.”
Cheatle’s resignation comes as the Secret Service comes under increased scrutiny over the assasination attempt.
