Law enforcement officials identified a Marine Corps veteran as one of the attendees shot and injured at the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump over the weekend, according to a statement from the state police and service records.
David Dutch, 57, was one of three rallygoers shot Saturday when a gunman, identified by the FBI as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, fired rounds at the former president during a campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania. Dutch's sister told Military.com on Monday that the Marine veteran will have a second surgery following the shooting.
Dutch, of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, is a Marine Corps veteran who served during the Gulf War, according to his service record, which was provided to Military.com by the service Monday.
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He is a member of the Marine Corps League, or MCL District 8, according to a social media post from the organization Sunday.
"I am sure everyone has seen the news and are appalled at how divided we have become. Well, it has finally hit home to the League. It is with great sadness that I report that one of the civilians shot at the rally was one of our own," Matt Popovich, the vice commandant, said in a now-edited post from Sunday.
Popovich said in the post that Dutch was "in critical condition, shot in the liver and chest" and "in an induced coma."
The post now does not include the comments from Popovich. Military.com cannot independently confirm Dutch's current health status and attempted to contact the Marine Corps League Department of Pennsylvania, but was unsuccessful. The release from state police lists Dutch as in "stable condition," and The New York Times reported that he remains hospitalized with liver damage and broken ribs.
Military.com contacted Jennifer Grazier, who identified herself as Dutch's sister. She confirmed his status as a Marine Corps veteran, but was reticent to comment as the investigation into the shooting is ongoing.
"He was hurt pretty bad," she said. "He's going for a second surgery. ... I just want to pray for my brother, and all the other victims and their families. And Donald Trump, I hope he's OK."
Dutch entered the Marine Corps in 1986 as an infantry assaultman, or 0351 military occupational specialty, according to his records. He served during operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, leaving the service in 1992 as a corporal.
He earned the Combat Action Ribbon, which is awarded to Marines who participated in active ground or surface combat during wartime, according to the service. He also earned two Sea Service Deployment Ribbons, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Southwest Asia Service Medal.
He entered the service from Pittsburgh, and his last duty assignment was with 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, out of Camp Pendleton, California.
Dutch, along with two other attendees, was shot when Crooks opened fire toward the stage at Trump's rally. Trump was rushed off the stage by the Secret Service with blood on the right side of his face and ear. The Secret Service killed Crooks after the initial gunfire.
The other victims include Corey Comperatore, a fireman who was killed while protecting his family from the gunfire, President Joe Biden said following the incident. The third victim, who state police said was in stable condition, was 74-year-old James Copenhaver.
Aides said the upper part of Trump's right ear was wounded but that he was doing well after the shooting. The shooter apparently fired rounds from roughly 400 feet away from the stage. As the Secret Service is under scrutiny, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas called the event a "security failure and chilling moment" in U.S. history that "cannot be understated."
"If I only half-turn, it hits the back of the brain. The other way goes right through [the skull]. And because the sign was high, I'm looking up," Trump told the media Sunday. "The chances of my making a perfect turn are probably one-tenth of 1%, so I'm not supposed to be here."
Biden condemned the shooting in a message to the nation following the incident.
"We cannot, we must not, go down this road in America," he said. "There is no place in America for this kind of violence, for any violence ever. Period. No exception. We can't allow this violence to be normalized."
