Presidential Security: Dancing with Wolves
- Marcel Courteau
- Jul 28, 2024
- 5 min read
Are lone wolves an unstoppable threat to world leaders?
In the words of John Hinckley Jr., the man who shot Ronald Reagan: "John Lennon is dead. What does life matter?" This despair and obsession, shared by other lone wolves like Ted Kaczynski and Mark David Chapman, reveals the danger these individuals pose to national security.
In criminology, the term "lone wolf" describes an individual who acts alone in planning and executing violent attacks without direct support from organizations or networks. These attackers are difficult to identify in advance due to their apparent normality and lack of communication with extremist groups. Several historical cases show how failures in presidential security have allowed these "lone wolves" to achieve their objectives.
On April 14, 1865, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, an actor and Confederate sympathizer, at Ford's Theatre in Washington D.C. Although this was a conspiracy case with other accomplices planning to kill high-ranking government officials, Booth's access to the president was facilitated by a critical failure: Lincoln's bodyguard, John Parker, abandoned his post to go to a tavern during the play.
This is even more incomprehensible considering that Lincoln had shared with family and friends a premonitory dream in which he saw himself being laid out in a coffin in the White House. Booth took advantage of this laxity to enter the presidential box and shoot Lincoln in the head. Booth escaped on horseback while the gravely injured Lincoln was taken to a nearby house. During his agony, Lincoln expressed his last words: "There is no place like home," and died the next day.
President Abraham Lincoln - Murder Scene - John Wilkes Booth
Booth did not act alone. His plan included Lewis Powell, George Atzerodt, and David Herold, who also targeted Vice President Andrew Johnson and Secretary of State William H. Seward. Powell severely wounded Seward, but Atzerodt lost his nerve and did not attack Johnson. Booth and Herold fled, hiding for 12 days before being located in a barn in Virginia. Herold surrendered, but Booth was shot by Sergeant Boston Corbett. While dying, Booth muttered his last words: "Useless, useless," and died shortly after.
On March 30, 1981, Ronald Reagan was severely wounded by John Hinckley Jr. outside the Hilton Hotel in Washington D.C.
Hinckley had developed an obsession with actress Jodie Foster after seeing her in the film "Taxi Driver" (1976), where she played an underage prostitute. The plot, which includes an attempted presidential assassination, resonated deeply with him. Convinced that he could gain Foster's attention, Hinckley sent her letters and poems. When he received no response, he decided to emulate the film's plot and assassinate the president
That day, he managed to approach Reagan by mingling with the crowd. He fired six shots in quick succession, wounding the president. The lack of effective physical barriers and the ability to approach without arousing suspicion highlighted serious security failures.
Despite the severity of the attack, Reagan showed remarkable resilience and an indomitable spirit. While being taken to the operating room, he maintained his sense of humor, telling his wife Nancy: "Honey, I forgot to duck." He also joked with the doctors: "I hope you're all Republicans." Reagan survived the attack thanks to emergency surgery and quickly returned to his duties.
John Hinckley Jr. was arrested at the scene and found not guilty by reason of insanity in 1982. He spent over three decades at St. Elizabeth's Psychiatric Hospital in Washington D.C. In 2016, a judge ruled that Hinckley no longer posed a danger and allowed him to live with his mother under strict conditions. In 2021, he was released without restrictions, although he remains monitored by authorities.
On September 19, 2014, Omar Gonzalez, a war veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder, jumped the White House fence and ran across the north lawn carrying a knife.
Gonzalez, who suffered from PTSD, managed to evade Secret Service agents, passing through several rooms, (see video) before finally being apprehended in the East Room by an off-duty agent. During his arrest, he mentioned that "the atmosphere was collapsing" and that he needed to warn President Obama to alert the public. Later, police found 800 rounds of ammunition, two hatchets, and a machete in his car parked near the White House.
This incident highlighted multiple failures: the absence of a guard at the front door, a disabled alarm, and the inability of several agents to stop the intruder before he penetrated deeply into the residence. These failures led to the resignation of Secret Service Director Julia Pierson and a review of security measures.
Gonzalez was charged with multiple offenses, including unlawful entry into a restricted building with a dangerous weapon and illegal possession of ammunition. He initially pleaded not guilty but later accepted a plea deal and was sentenced to 17 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, a cook in a nursing home, attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump on July 13, 2024, during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. So far, Crooks has acted alone, a "lone wolf."
Days before the attack, Crooks purchased a ladder and ammunition and spent time at the Clairton Sportsmen's Club, where he was a member along with his father, practicing shooting. He used his father's AR-15 rifle, which 1 in 20 Americans owns and can be obtained for between $600 and $2,000. His father had reported Crooks and the weapon missing on the same day as the attack.
Despite being in an open and easily controllable area, several witnesses saw the shooter and alerted the police minutes before the attack. Videos from individuals show people pointing to the shooter on a rooftop across from the podium where Trump was to give his speech, but the police did not act, and there is still no explanation for this.
Crooks managed to fire from a rooftop about 120 meters from the stage, injuring Trump and causing other casualties. A fire chief in the crowd was killed, and two other men were seriously injured.
Crooks lived with his parents, who were devastated and cooperated fully with authorities. Described by his community as reserved and without a history of mental problems or extreme political affiliations, his action was unexpected. Some former classmates recalled his conservative views in school debates but showed no signs of radicalization.
Footage of the moments before the attack
The FBI found no evidence of a specific ideology or clear motive behind the attack, reinforcing the characterization of Crooks as a "lone wolf." His seemingly normal life and lack of previous signs of radicalization or severe mental problems have made him an enigma, leaving many questions still unanswered about the motivations behind his violent act.
Except for conspiratorial events like those of Lincoln and Kennedy, having had precedents of lone wolves like Hinckley and Omar Gonzalez, it is not understood how in the era of satellite photos, drones, algorithms, and people pointing out the shooter in an open place with all the time in the world to stop him, the attack and even more the death of Corey Comperatore and the injuries could not be prevented.
The appearance of such criminals is not new. What has been greatly baffling is the response of the security forces, both the Secret Service and the police, in a totally controllable location.
All this seems like great negligence, really frustrating because when negligence is so great, everything gets confused, boundaries blur, making it impossible to distinguish between a deficient security job and a possible conspiracy disguised as ineptitude. Although nothing more can be confirmed at this time.
List of attacks on Presidents of the United States. (Expand)
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