Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, grew up in an extremely withdrawn and emotionally cold household, according to his cousin. A year after the shocking event, family members are still trying to understand what led him to such a violent act.
Thomas was raised in a very quiet and controlled environment by his father, Matthew Crooks, who was described by relatives as emotionally distant and antisocial. His cousin, Mark Crooks, said their home life seemed almost robotic, with Thomas and his sister appearing completely expressionless even during family gatherings.
At their grandfather’s funeral in 2019, the two children stood silently beside their parents, barely moving or interacting with anyone. Mark and other relatives found the behavior unsettling.
Not long after that funeral, Matthew reportedly told the extended family they wouldn’t see them again and they didn’t. The Crooks family cut ties, despite living only about an hour away from their relatives in Pennsylvania. Mark said he had no idea what Thomas was interested in as he grew up and had no knowledge of the mental health issues or bomb-making activity that would come to light after the shooting.
Matthew Crooks, now 54, had a long history of keeping his family isolated, even from his own brother, Mark Sr. When the two families did see each other on rare occasions, Matthew would often lock himself in a room to avoid contact. This long-standing pattern of reclusiveness may have played a role in Thomas’s growing emotional detachment and eventual radicalization.
Thomas lived in a modest three-bedroom home in Bethel Park with his parents and older sister, Katherine. On July 13, 2024, he traveled more than 250 miles to attend the Trump rally. There, he climbed onto a nearby rooftop, positioned himself about 130 yards from the stage, and opened fire with an AR-15 rifle.
He fired eight rounds. One bullet grazed Trump’s ear. Tragically, a bystander, 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, was killed, and two others — David Dutch, 58, and James Copenhaver, 75 — were seriously injured. Thomas was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper shortly after the attack began.
When Mark Crooks heard what had happened, he said his emotions were complicated. He didn’t feel the kind of grief one might expect, largely because he hardly knew Thomas. Instead, his concern was more for Thomas’s sister and parents, especially considering how private and isolated their lives had been.
Since the shooting, the family has pulled back even further, refusing all media interviews and cutting off communication even with close relatives. Mark said his father — Thomas’s uncle — tried several times to reach out, but got no response, which sadly, he said, was nothing new.
The Crooks family’s deep isolation, combined with Thomas’s quiet descent into violence, has left a lot of unanswered questions — and a chilling sense that something tragic had been building behind closed doors for years.
