Local law enforcement experts talk about keeping candidates safe

DETROIT, Mich (FOX 2) - Following a shooting at former President Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania, law enforcement officials are treating the incident as an attempted assassination of the Republican nominee.

Local Detroit law enforcement experts, including a retired special agent, weigh in on what goes into keeping a president or former president safe during public campaign events.

"This is a horrible incident, thinking back, you know there's going to be some Secret Service members, maybe thinking back, what more could they have done? I hope they don't do that too much to themselves" said Paul Vanderplow a retired special agent in charge at the ATF in Detroit.

According to retired assistant Detroit Police chief Steve Dolunt, "that's their job to protect the president or presidential candidate. That's their job, their singular job. And they swarm the stage. And they got him down. They did everything right. And they're talking. You can hear the live mic saying, shooter down, shooter down, move him, but how did they miss a guy on the roof?"

In a statement on social media, Trump said he was "shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear."

The Secret Service added; the former president is now safe and is fine after being checked out by medical personnel.