Adams Twp. officer who shot Crooks during July 13, 2024 assassination attempt honored
GREEN TREE, Allegheny County — A simple coin flip determined where Adams Township Police Sgt. Aaron Zaliponi would be positioned during then-candidate President Donald Trump’s campaign rally on July 13, 2024 at the Butler Farm Show grounds.
Mere hours after losing that toss with Zelienople Lt. Kevin Mikulan, he was designated as a counterassault team leader. The veteran officer would later fire a shot that may have altered the course of history.
“We sort of joke that that’s the coin flip that changed the world,” longtime friend and fellow Adams Township Police Sgt. Edward Lenz said.
When a would-be assassin opened fire at the rally, Zaliponi was the first to take a shot at him.
Zaliponi hit his target — 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks — and stopped him long enough for a Secret Service countersniper to kill the assailant and prevent any further loss of life.
For his act of heroism that afternoon, Zaliponi was presented with the In the Face of Danger Award during the 24th annual Amen Corner Senator John Heinz Law Enforcement Awards Luncheon on Friday, Oct. 17, at the DoubleTree Hotel.
“He was able to determine it was gunfire, figure out where it’s coming from, see the guy on the roof and then accurately fire at the guy and stop the active shooter in six seconds,” Lenz added. “That is incredibly impressive.”
Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday and Butler County Commissioners Vice-Chairwoman Kim Geyer, who is also Zaliponi’s mother-in-law, delivered remarks to an audience filled with hundreds of law enforcement personnel from around the Greater Pittsburgh Region.
Geyer spoke of her son-in-law’s involvement, saying Zaliponi took the ninth shot after Crooks had already fired eight rounds, one of which grazed Trump’s ear and another that killed longtime Buffalo Township fire chief Corey Comperatore.
She said Zaliponi “pretty much destroyed his (Crooks’) gun” and that there were “no shots for at least 10 seconds between the ninth shot and the 10th shot,” which killed Crooks while he was still perched on the roof of an AGR International warehouse.
“I think it’s meaningful to him to be acknowledged by the public,” Geyer said afterward. “It’s not every day that a police officer or emergency services unit task force member is recognized publicly. They do this work every day. They’re out there putting their lives on the line to serve and protect the community and the people of Butler County.
“We don’t always say ‘thank you’ when we should.”
Just 11 days before Zaliponi took the shot, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police officer Kevin Merkel and Cranberry Township Police officer Ed Steinmetz found themselves face-to-face with 37-year-old Logan Cumberland, who police said was mentally unstable and armed with a rifle.
Shortly after Cumberland’s rental car was found vacant with multiple weapons inside near the Cranberry Highlands Golf Course, a manhunt ensued in the area. Merkel and Steinmetz soon encountered him in a wooded-area off Freshcorn Road and fatally shot him.
For their bravery in preventing any additional harm to the community, KDKA-TV’s Jon Delano presented both officers with the In the Line of Fire Award.
“At least around here in this area, this award means a lot,” Steinmetz said. “It’s an honor to be recognized with the caliber of officers that are here. It’s humbling.”
Steinmetz said there’s no question as to whether or not he would act in a similar manner if pressed into the same situation again.
“I’d do the same thing. Maybe there’s a tactic or somewhere here or there I might change. You know what I mean?” he said. “I volunteered to go in there and I’d do it again. If we had the same thing happen or a similar situation happen on my next shift, it is what it is.”
Amen Corner, a nonprofit civic organization founded in 1870, has annually recognized excellence in the region’s law enforcement community.
More than a dozen other officers from around the region were honored with engraved statues for their selflessness in the face of immediate danger while responding to incidents throughout 2024.
“It’s one of the nicest things that we can do because they put their lives on the line for us daily,” said Amen Corner president June Yonas. “It’s wonderful that we have an opportunity to thank them.”
