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.
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, Pennsylvania, after Crooks scaled the roof of a nearby glass manufacturing building and took aim at the then-presidential candidate.
A statement from the Copenhaver family provided to Fox News Digital confirmed his death Thursday afternoon, and noted the veteran’s “dedication to this great country.”
“It is with profound sadness that the Copenhaver family confirms that James Copenhaver passed away on September 23, 2026, surrounded by his loved ones,” the statement said.
“Above all else, James was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather. James shared a lifetime of commitment to his wife, instilled the values of hard work, integrity, and the service of others in his children, and found some of his greatest joy in life in his grandchildren. His family was the center of his world, and he was the center of theirs.
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“James’s dedication to this great country was a defining part of his life. As a veteran, he proudly served our nation in the armed forces, and his love of country never wavered. James was a true American patriot who believed deeply in the freedoms and ideals upon which this nation was founded, and he embodied the very best traits of our great nation.
“James and the Copenhaver family have been deeply grateful for the outpouring of love, prayers, and support they have received over the past two years, since James was gravely wounded while in attendance at President Trump’s rally on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. Throughout that difficult time, James faced every challenge with the same strength and resolve that defined his life, and the kindness shown by so many brought great comfort to him and to those who love him.
“As the Copenhaver family begins the difficult journey forward without James by their side, they welcome your continued thoughts, prayers, and support. The family respectfully asks that their privacy be honored as they mourn his loss and celebrate his life. James will be deeply missed, and his memory will live on in all who knew and loved him.”
Trump described Copenhaver on Thursday as a “true American Patriot,” writing on Truth Social that Copenhaver’s death is a “tremendous loss.”
“More than two years ago in Butler, Pennsylvania, a crazed gunman attempted to stifle our America First Movement. Instead, Jim and so many other wonderful Patriots who love our Country, stood united in defense of our shared values of Freedom, Liberty, and Justice. After being wounded while protecting his family, Jim showed tremendous bravery, courageously continuing to FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT, and maintaining a positive spirit despite unimaginable hardships,” Trump added. “His indelible legacy of love and devotion will forever endure. Our hearts and prayers are with the Copenhaver family, especially his incredible wife Marianne.”
The House Republican Conference posted an obituary for Copenhaver on social media, saying he had died Thursday and that lawmakers were “deeply saddened.”
“Jim endured unimaginable hardship with strength and perseverance. We join his family and loved ones in mourning his loss and praying for them during this difficult time. May he rest in peace,” the caucus said in a 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.
David Dutch was also wounded in the shooting but survived. Butler County firefighter Corey Comperatore was shot and killed in the bleachers behind Trump’s dais that day.
Speaking to Pittsburgh’s KDKA in 2025, Copenhaver said he stood to look at the jumbotron behind him as Trump spoke.
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“Next thing I know, my sleeve has been yanked,” he said. “I could see a portion of it going by pretty fast, and I heard ‘pew.’ I heard it, and I didn’t realize at the time that I had gotten shot.”
He said he was then shot a second time but that the bullets both “went into soft material.”
“It was like a jolt. It didn’t knock me over, but I didn’t want to stand anymore,” he told the station.
A lawsuit Copenhaver filed against the United States earlier this year alleged he was also required to undergo multiple surgeries.
Mayor Jondavid Longo of nearby Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania — who spoke at the Butler rally — mourned Copenhaver’s reported death Thursday.
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“[Copenhaver] survived that day, but he never fully recovered from the wounds. For two years he lived with surgeries, remaining fragments, and pain that never left 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. May he rest in peace. Prayers for Marianne and the Copenhaver family.”
The attack triggered intense scrutiny of the Secret Service after investigations uncovered breakdowns in planning, communication and security around the rally site. Then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned less than two weeks later, taking responsibility for the security lapse. A subsequent bipartisan House task force concluded the Butler attack was preventable and identified failures in planning, execution and leadership.
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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.
Six Secret Service agents were later suspended without pay in connection with the 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.
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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