Some things should be known, as in completely understood. This is especially true when something important runs counter to government and/or media narratives. How the life of a former—and now current—president was saved is one of the things that needs to be fully understood. This is not just because it is of great consequence, but also because, in this case, the true story undoes narratives used against our Second Amendment freedom (the truth has a way of doing that); it exposes how a sniper was able to get so close to a president; and, especially in this case, the true story highlights something good and vital, yet fragile, in our national character we must celebrate as one fans a fire in need of oxygen.
Anyone who has been paying attention can visualize the scene at the Butler County Farm Show grounds in Pennsylvania on the afternoon of July 13, 2024, just after President Donald Trump (R) was shot in the ear. We’ve all seen the video, or at least an image, of Trump with his right fist raised to the audience and, with blood visible on his face and ear and an American flag behind him, shouting, “Fight! Fight! Fight!” This powerful gesture became the iconic image of the campaign.
What many still don’t know, however, is this scene of triumph over tragedy—a man behind Trump, Corey Comperatore, a former volunteer fire chief and father of two, was murdered—would not have been possible without the actions of Sgt. Aaron Zaliponi of the Adams Township Police Department.
Zaliponi is the Alpha Team Leader of the Butler County Emergency Service Unit. His mission for that day was to be the counterassault team leader for the local unit. He grew up hunting deer and small game with his father and brothers in western Pennsylvania. He served in the infantry in the Army National Guard for 14 years (1998-2012) and was deployed to combat zones three times. He came home to serve in blue. He is a part of the American fabric of service and responsibility. Like so many Americans, guns to him are tools for self-defense and sport.
On this day, he had an AR-15 he’d built strapped to his chest. This kept his hands free as he surveyed the outdoor rally and commanded his team.
At approximately 6:09 p.m., his team was notified about a man on top of one of the agricultural buildings. There were communication issues that day in the U.S. Secret Service-run security apparatus, but Zaliponi and his team were aware that this individual had already been spotted as a potential problem several times.
When this alert reached Zaliponi, his team deployed toward the building in question.
Zaliponi, however, held his position.
Moments later the first shots echoed over the rally, and Zaliponi saw officers scrambling to respond.
At the fourth gunshot, Zaliponi looked at the top of the building and saw a man lying in a prone position at the apex of the roof. He did not see this man pop up onto the roof, as this individual had hopped between roofs then crawled into this position. All Zaliponi could see was the man’s head and part of his upper chest.
The assassin then fired a fifth, sixth and seventh shot.
Within two seconds of the fourth shot, Zaliponi brought his rifle to his shoulder and acquired the gunman in his rifle’s red-dot optic. He says he saw the gas following the bullet as the murderer’s eighth shot went toward the stage.
Zaliponi’s red-dot optic—an EOTech EXPS3—was not magnified and he was 115 yards away from the killer. Still, he had trained for this offhand shot as a hunter, in the military and as a police officer. Video shows that just under 6 seconds after the assassin’s first shot, Zaliponi fired his only shot—this was the ninth shot of the incident.
Immediately after Sgt. Zaliponi fired, he observed the gunman on the roof jerk then slowly slump over his rifle as he slid down the backside of the roof.
Zaliponi kept his rifle on target to fire a follow-up shot, although, at this point, he could only see a small portion of the suspect’s head. But, just as Zaliponi was about to fire a second shot—and now about 16 seconds after the murderer’s first shot—a U.S. Secret Service counter sniper fired a round that struck the suspect’s head.
At this time, Zaliponi gave the Secret Service sniper team a thumbs up and said, “Good hit, good hit!”
The would-be assassin never fired another round after Sgt. Zaliponi fired his shot. Zaliponi, who is an NRA Benefactor Member and an NRA Certified Law Enforcement Patrol Rifle Instructor, likely saved the life of President Trump. For these reasons, the NRA named Sgt. Aaron Zaliponi the 2025 NRA Law Enforcement Officer of the Year.
“The only thing I wish, and I told the one victim’s wife when I finally got to meet her, is that I am sorry I did not see him sooner,” said Zaliponi.
When asked about his rifle, he said, “A lot of guys go out and buy these expensive rifles, but I built this rifle with a PSA 10.3 upper. I am hoping to get it back soon. It was taken as part of the federal investigation. They said I’d get it back in about two years and it has been nearly two years now.”
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