President Donald Trump mourned Jim Copenhaver this week after the Butler rally shooting victim died from complications of his 2024 wounds, calling the Pennsylvania man a true American patriot whose loss will endure.
President Donald Trump this week paid public tribute to Jim Copenhaver, the Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, rallygoer who died after more than two years of living with the gunshot wounds he took during the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt in Butler.
Breitbart News reported that Copenhaver, in his mid-70s, died Wednesday surrounded by family after sustaining serious injuries when Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire from a rooftop while Trump spoke on stage. Trump himself took a gunshot wound to the ear that day.
Copenhaver was seated behind the then-candidate. One of several shots sprayed into the crowd struck him. He was one of two audience members wounded; David Dutch of New Kensington was the other. Firefighter Corey Comperatore and the gunman Crooks were killed at the scene, with government snipers stopping Crooks after he fired.
Family members confirmed the death through their lawyer. Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday stated Copenhaver died “from complications stemming from those wounds.”
The Washington Examiner reported Copenhaver was 76 and was hit by two bullets, one in the triceps and another that shredded part of his colon before lodging in his body, leaving lasting nerve damage.
Journalist Ken Silva, who wrote a book on the attack, said a person close to the family confirmed permanent injuries that included bullet fragments still in his body. Silva wrote it was “no secret that Jim was dealing with permanent injuries from Butler.”
The New York Post reported he endured multiple surgeries and never fully recovered. The House Republican Conference said he “endured unimaginable hardship with strength and perseverance” and joined his family in mourning. Mayor Jondavid Longo added that for two years Copenhaver “lived with surgeries, remaining fragments, and pain that never left him.”
Those details match the longer arc of the Butler attack, including later findings on how Secret Service missed 102 radio warnings about the threat that day.
Just the News reported Trump’s Truth Social post mourning the man seated behind him when Crooks fired.
Trump posted:
“Jim Copenhaver, a true American Patriot, has passed away, 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. His indelible legacy of love and devotion will forever endure. Our hearts and prayers are with the Copenhaver family, especially his incredible wife Marianne. God bless you all!”
Fox News reported the family statement confirming James Copenhaver passed away on September 23, 2026, “surrounded by his loved ones,” and noted he was a veteran who faced ongoing surgeries and permanent injuries.
The same attack that wounded Copenhaver later drew fresh scrutiny over security lapses, including a DHS report on a Secret Service agent Googling the shooter’s rooftop as gunfire erupted.
Copenhaver’s death closes one more chapter from the July 13, 2024, rally. Crooks was killed that day. Questions about the shooter’s remains surfaced again when an anonymous donor secretly paid to cremate Thomas Crooks, according to FBI documents.
Political violence around the Trump orbit has not stayed in the past. Separate cases have kept the threat picture alive, from courtroom developments in other high-profile killings to charges against a Rochester man for allegedly threatening Donald Trump Jr.
For the Copenhaver family, the public record is simpler and harder. A devoted husband, father, and grandfather was gravely wounded while sitting behind a presidential candidate. He fought through fragments, surgeries, and nerve damage for more than two years. Then the complications from those wounds ended his life.
Americans who show up to rallies should not have to calculate the risk of rooftop rifle fire. When they do, and when the wounds finally claim them years later, the least the country can do is remember their names and refuse to shrug off the failures that left them exposed.