If Secret Service had shot first, Trump gunman would be another martyr for the right

Charlotte Observer's Editorial totally uncalled for.

Cedar's Take: Back in the day The Charlotte Observer Editorial page was always a source of insightful thought and cometary on local and sometimes national events. 

Letters to the editor were distilled down to concise opinions and sometimes local gripes. Charlotte area columnists like Tom Sorenson, John Kilgo and editors Rick Thames and Rolfe Neal often offered up thoughtful and sometime humorous insight.

Occasionally national columnists like Mike Royko, Paul Harvey, and Irv Kupcinet and even Andy Rooney would appear if the national nature of the news was worthy.

Clearly the assassination attempt on the life of former President Donald J. Trump is nationally news worthy, yet the Charlotte Observer had to go all the way to Wichita to find some left wing nutjob who thinks every attendee at a Trump rally is a Trumper as he makes his wild claim regarding conservative Americans.

When did crazy talk become opinion? No wonder the Observer print edition in now only 3 times a week. 

Opinion BY DION LEFLER JULY 28, 2024 7:07 AM 

Right-wing media considers Jan. 6 rioter Ashli Babbitt a hero. Why not Thomas Matthew Crooks? 

As we mull the shooting of Donald Trump and its aftermath, let’s consider, “What if?” What if the Secret Service had shot Thomas Matthew Crooks as he crawled across the roof, before he opened fire on the once and possibly future president? Crooks would have been a hero (and martyr) of the right wing. Headlines in right-leaning media would have screamed, “Young Trump Supporter Shot Dead by Feds Outside Rally.” 

It would have been the same play that the right ran after a woman named Ashli Babbitt was shot by a federal police officer as she and an outraged mob tried to force their way into a barricaded area during the Jan. 6, 2021, invasion of the Capitol. 

Trump called Babbitt “An innocent, wonderful, incredible woman, a military woman,” and called the officer who shot her “a disgrace.” Later, it was discovered Babbitt had a criminal record of violence for repeatedly ramming a car being driven by her rival in a love triangle. 

Crooks was about as politically ambiguous as a person could be. About all we know of his views at this point is that he donated $15 to a Democratic website 3 1/2 years ago when he was 17, and registered to vote Republican when he turned 18. 

Given Crooks’ threadbare political history, the entire world would have profiled him as a Trump supporter if he’d been shot by a counter-sniper before shooting at the former president. First off, he dressed like a Trumper. 

His choice of attire for his attack was a T-shirt repping Demolition Ranch, a YouTube channel dedicated to blasting stuff with exotic weapons and setting off explosions for entertainment. Let’s just say its target audience is not coastal liberal elites. 

Second, Crooks was armed. It’s been a thing for a while now to parade around with assault weapons at political protests and outside political rallies, and Trump has been one of the politicians encouraging that. 

Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson testified to Congress that Trump wanted the Secret Service to shut off metal detectors and let armed people into his Jan. 6 rally because “they’re not here to hurt me.” 

With all the fringy flakes packing heat in public these days, it’s grown increasingly difficult, and in some cases impossible, for law enforcement to tell who’s a real threat and who’s just doing heavily armed performance art. It didn’t use to be this way. I got my first presidential press pass in 1984 and covered events by Ronald Reagan, Walter Mondale, Jesse Jackson and Gary Hart. In those days, possession of firearms anywhere near a campaign event was prima facie evidence you were up to no good, and you’d have spent the rest of your day, and maybe more, in the friendly confines of a local jail. 

The one thing I’m sure of with the Trump assassination attempt is that if the Secret Service had shot first, the same congress folk who ran agency Director Kimberly Cheatle out of Washington for failing to protect Trump would be trying to run her out for her “trigger happy” agents shooting Crooks. 

I can see that hearing now: 

Q: At the time your agents opened fire on this young man, he was outside your security perimeter, wasn’t he not? A: Yes, he was. 

Q: Is it your standard policy to shoot at people outside the designated perimeter? A: Not ordinarily, but he was spotted crawling across a roof to a position overlooking the venue with a rifle. 

Q: Isn’t it possible he was simply crawling across that roof to get a better view of President Trump’s speech? And so on, and so on. 

It’s worth noting here that while guns weren’t allowed inside the Republican National Convention the week after Trump was shot, they were allowed just outside the arena. If the members of Congress on the warpath against the Secret Service actually wanted to solve the problem, they’d pass a law saying that anyone bringing a gun within shooting distance of a political event can be disarmed and detained, at least for the duration of the event. But they don’t, so they won’t.

Opinion Editor Dion Lefler has been providing award-winning coverage of local government, politics and business as a reporter in Wichita for 25 years. Dion hails from Los Angeles, where he worked for the LA Daily News, the Pasadena Star-News and other papers. He’s a father of twins, director of lay servant ministries in the United Methodist Church and plays second base for the Old Cowtown vintage baseball team.

Charloot's Latest Homicide Victim

Charloot's latest homicide victim ID'd as Brian Johnson age 38. Mr. Johnson apparently has a long 20 year history of arrests most were dismissed over the last 10 years.

Bryan Xavier Johnson Photo MCSO

His first offense in 2002 was discharging a firearm into occupied property. The class "E" felony earned him a sentence of probation. The customary "second chance".

Then in April of 2009 he was arrested for robbery with a dangerous weapon. By December he was convicted of this charge and sentenced to a minimum of 5 years and 1 month and he ended up serving more than 6 years.

Note the time from arrest to conviction not 2-3 years as we currently see in Mecklenburg County today but rather just 8 months.

Released on parole in 2015. Mr. Johnson continued his life of crime in a new world. A Charlotte with liberal judges and liberal DAs. With arrests in 2016, 2017, 2020, 2023 all dismissed by the Mecklenburg District Attorney, Johnson learned that arrests were meaningless.

His most recent arrest on the charge of Possession of a Firearm by a Felon would have resulted in an active prison sentence he had been brought to trial and convicted in a federal court. Unfortunately in Mecklenburg County his case was given low priority and he was given a number of continuances and countless legal delays. The most recent in April of this year.

Sadly this lack of incarceration and Johnson's lifestyle apparently put his life as risk. Becoming Charlotte's 78th homicide victim.

Once again proving that incarceration saves lives.

The "Eyes" Have It! (Update)

It is often said "the eyes are the window to the soul" a quote often attributed to William Shakespeare, Leonardo Da Vinci, the philosopher Cicero and even Jesus in the bible from Matthew "The eye is the lamp of the body" so it comes as no surprise that the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office see some really odd, freaky and often scary mofos.

Here's just a sampling of some sent to CP in the last few weeks.

Kiarra "Left Eye" Bennett - Misdemeanor Conspiracy

Michael Todd Murphy - DWI 

Tiknija Strong - AWDW

Alan Philip Mack - Resisting Possession Drug Paraphernalia

Arnissa Agurs - Resisting, Asselt, Intoxicated and Disruptive

Brandon Boswell - Weapon

Devon Graham - Assault 

Matthew Raplee - His 6th Arrest in 3 Years

Howie James Darry-Wayne - Discharging Firearm

Michael Scott Kezih - His 2nd DWI

Donzell Stephon Younkins - AWDW

Probation Fail

The idea of probation is to give offenders a second chance to make changes and get their life back on track. Not to just be arrested over and over again. 12 times in the last 24 months. Breaking and Entering and Felony Larceny.

So why hasn't someone suggested that Charles Munson might want to change his name and his appearance rather than arresting him again and again? Just a thought. I don't think it would hurt.

I mean seriously if you just happen to look like mass murder Charles Manson don't you think at some point in your lifelong criminal career you'd think to yourself maybe I need to make a change?

Charles Manson Mugshot CA Dept of Corrections

Would you give either of these guys a job? 

CMPD Spotted Wearing Outer Carrier Vests at GOP Convention

Local Charlotte news station has a nutty over a photo of CMPD Officers wearing "outer carrier vests" as CMPD Johnnie Jennings name comes up and we are off to the races.

According to several sources nearly 100 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officers are at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this week, helping to provide additional security.

Someone from Spectrum News snapped a picture of the officers wearing the vests.

The local news says that the controversy surrounding the vests first came up in the spring during budget negotiations, just weeks after four law-enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty in east Charlotte. City councilmember Tariq Bokhari led the charge for the new equipment.

CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings is not a fan of the vests, a stance the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) and others have criticized.

”These vests offer no additional ballistic protection and raise officer safety concerns,” Jennings said in an earlier statement. “It is important to note that three fallen officers wore outer vests on April 29...in addition, the outer vest has a military-style appearance that contradicts the community-oriented policing philosophy I have championed for years.”

On Wednesday, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police posted a lengthy statement on Facebook regarding the vests.

“We are perplexed at CMPD Chief Jennings’ unstable position on load-bearing vests,” the statement read in part. “Chief Jennings has relentlessly spoken about how unsafe and unprofessional they are.”

According to the FOP, most CMPD units – including all tactical units – wear the vests, but not patrol officers.

The complete text of the FOP FaceBook post:

Earlier this week Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department sent close to one hundred officers to Milwaukee, WI to help with security for the Republican National Convention. We are proud to have members willing to spend time away from their families to be there. 

While we are proud of these men and women, we are perplexed at CMPD Chief Jennings’ unstable position on load-bearing vests. Chief Jennings has relentlessly spoken about how unsafe and unprofessional they are. 

Despite him deeming these vests unsafe, what are the nearly one hundred CMPD officers in Milwaukee wearing right now?  You guessed it, load-bearing vests.  Every city leader needs to ask him, “Chief Jennings, why are you risking the lives of your officers?”

Second, he says that load-bearing vests are unprofessional, saying they have “a military-style appearance that contradicts the community-oriented policing philosophy” he has “championed for years.”  Again, one should ask – if it is militaristic, why does he let any officer wear these vests, and why would he send nearly one hundred of his officers to Milwaukee, WI while displaying Charlotte’s “soldiers” in front of a national lens?

Just last Friday Chief Jennings emailed CMPD saying he knows that officers will represent themselves in Milwaukee with the utmost professionalism.  How can they do that while wearing a "military-style" uniform he champions against?  What makes this even better is that his email was accompanied by a photo of the Chief standing in front of these officers AS THEY WERE WEARING THEIR LOAD-BEARING VESTS.  You cannot make this up!

What you may not know is that most CMPD units, and all tactical units, currently wear load-bearing vests despite him saying they are unsafe and unprofessional, Charlotte’s Police Chief explicitly denies them for the officers who are the first line of defense – Patrol Officers.  What does Chief Jennings have against his patrol officers?  This is their number one request and despite proven data that they reduce hip and back pain, he makes them suffer, why?

When the Chief asks for additional patrols at his lake house, who does it – patrol officers.  When personnel pulls are required to work large city events, who does it impact the most – patrol officers. Yet, when patrol officers ask him for ONE thing to better themselves, he tells them no.

From all his defiance and insipid excuses, there is one thing his patrol officers think; that he couldn’t care less about them.  Chief Jennings says that perception is reality.  His personal choice against this vest is due to his perception of them, but the reality is that his officers are broken; that is their reality, it is their pain, their emotions, and their frustration.

Officers must be broken and apply for an ADA medical waiver to get a load-bearing vest to better themselves and guess what CMPD decided to do?  They put unreasonable hurdles in the way, including meetings with HR, taking photographs of officers applying for ADA waivers, taking an hours-long training block on the proper wearing of the ADA-approved vest as an HR representative and TWO Captains watch them, followed by an intense obstacle course they must run through.  Intimidation much? 

No other officers we have spoken to wearing non-ADA load-bearing vests went through this in-depth process.  For any ADA-specialized attorneys on this thread, does this sound like we have a case we can discuss further? Please let us know, and we will be glad to discuss more details with you for the betterment of our members.

To Chief Jennings, your bike officers wear an amazing uniform that they love, know is comfortable, alleviates many of their pain-related concerns, looks professional, and is one you CURRENTLY allow them to wear.  It has been field-tested and worn since Charlotte hosted the RNC in 2020.  Why are we wasting taxpayer money buying new uniforms for ADA when there is one we know already works?  The only reason we can think of is that it’s to single out and shame a certain group of officers by distinguishing those with ADA waivers from those without. 

Why won’t you let all officers benefit from the load-bearing vest we know works and approve them department-wide?  Stop being selfish and making excuses. This is all on you.

To the City Manager, City Council, and Charlotte Citizens is this being good stewards of taxpayer dollars? 

Secret Service Looking Rather Disorganized and Incompetent?

Like many Americans CP watched the Trump assassination attempt play out live on television. 

Not since the morning of September 11,2001 have I felt the same level of helplessness, while watching in real time people in fear and danger while I was not being to do a damn thing.

Now in the 48 hours after there is a lot of Monday morning quarterbacking so here's my take.

Advance Team Assessment:

Much of the Secret Service operation at these events relies on interagency response and advance threat assessment. 

There is a group who are supposed to know all the details of the venue and conduct a complete threat assessment. 

They work with local assets to map out routes and traffic and most importantly review the venue from a tactical what if scenario. Road, culverts, storage buildings, sewage and storm drains are known mapped and secured. No building with a 1/2 mile or more should be left unsecured or unmonitored. 

A no-fly zone of at least 10 miles is established. 

Asset staging locations are determined ingress and egress routes and security are planned and contingencies are laid out.

Guests are "pre screened" then screened again upon entry. Only a select group of VIPs and journalists are allowed within the bunker zone. Even these people are consider threats.

The counter sniper team:

One of the most integral parts are the counter sniper teams. In Butler Pennsylvania there were two teams.

They not only respond to threats but also serve as the eyes and ears of the entire protective operation.

In the above screen grab the Officer raises his head perhaps in disbelief in what some have called "buck fever" where a deer hunter makes a double take because he can't believe his good fortune.  But more likely he's checking further down range for other threats or innocents.

Witnesses say they saw the shooter "bear crawling" on the low pitched roof about 500 feet from the former President. From the counter-sniper team vantage point he would not be seen until he reached the roof peak. 

However while in the dead zone unseen by Secret Service assets he was clearly visible to witnesses. Their calls and shouts can be seen and heard on several videos posted online.

Note: Even though the two assets on the roof are wearing tactical vests the say POLICE they are indeed Secret Service. Secret Service uniformed and counter-sniper (CS) teams wear police titles.

Delayed Response:

The time the first shot was fired and President Trump grabbed his ear and the shooter was on video seen down is about 11 seconds. 

By the time the 3rd shot is heard secret service agents are rushing to cover the President.

Several more shots are heard then a volley of four shots follow on and the shots stop.

Video also shows the two members of the counter-sniper team to the left of President Trump. One is seen looking through his scope then raising his head looking in the direction of the building were the suspect is located and then going back to the scope with movements clearly indicating engaging the suspect target.

Keep in mind we don't know the rules of engagement or what the chain of approval to engage a target was that day and why. 

Everything from general confusion to communications failing can play a part in a massive failure like this, much let on September 11th. 

Also, this would be engaging a target with deadly force outside of the security zone. As many have pointed out this split second decision is a life and death choice with massive ramifications. It's not just some free-fire zone. 

A lot of frustration is being placed on the CS team/teams. But we have a very small amount of information as to what they were dealing with at the time of the shooting. 

Yes it seems beyond comprehension how a roof-line on the only nearby buildings in a relatively open flat area were not secured or at least watched very closely. How did so many people see this guy up there and even a cop supposedly venture up there to look but the event was allowed to proceed? 

Once again, we don't know. Communications failure? Planning failure? Individual performance failure? Systemic bureaucratic failure? All the above? It's usually a mix of factors that lead to catastrophe. This is unlikely to be different, but we have such little info at this time, prematurely blaming the CS team is malpractice.

Protective Unit Follies:

We have all seen the defiant President Trump rising up from behind the podium fist raised screaming Fight Fight Fight. An iconic image to say the least however this photo below is also the definition of complete failure. 

The protectee or target is completely exposed, giving the target time to wave at the crowd when the team does not know whether there are more shooters, whether it’s a terrorist attack, whether there’s someone else in the crowd with a gun that you may have missed or nearby buildings, or whether there are even explosives that were later found in the car.

We also watched as three female agents struggled with basics including the one known as "chubbie" struggling with securing her weapon. 

At times it looked like a poorly staged high school play. With one female agent suddenly remembering her sunglasses in a "oh I need to look the part" moment.

It would be comical except is was so deadly serious.

The question is did the protective operation succeed? 

One person shot dead, a former president shot, two other people shot. The shooter shot minutes after multiple people warned there was someone on the roof with a weapon. 

If that is the definition of success I'd be concerned as to what constitutes failure?

Where was the good intelligence gathering long before the shooting occurred? Was this an absolute DEI failure? Sure looks that way. Even if the women on the mission were in the protective unit I suspect there are other DEI hires up the chain of command.

Sure the shooter was neutralized.

It was a good shoot.

But the idea of the "Secret Service" Protective Unit is to protect not to just respond.

And in case you missed it, there were reports that explosives were found in the car of the shooter who attempted to assassinate Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. 

Law enforcement officials discovered bomb-making materials inside his’ vehicle, which was parked near the rally site. This discovery prompted authorities to dispatch bomb technicians to handle the situation safely. This is why you take the target off that place immediately because you do not know much at that time and you do not want to wait to find out!

Perhaps the Biden administration has decided that Trump is not worthy of the best. Maybe this is the "B" team or even the "G" team. Afterall Obama, Bush and Carter still have full protective services. As does Pence and of course Harris.

One of the more interesting comments I've noted is someone who points out to the new Secret Service under Joe Biden lacks fun.

We all know guys that are good at this job and they are great at their job but also love it because it is fun.

The perfect person for this job lives for the job. He doesn’t want to do anything else. He goes to the bar after his shift and talks about new ways to identify and kill an assassin. He does hypothetical situations where he pretends he’s the assassin. He takes a service car out for a joy ride and burns the rubber off the tires. He sneaks the sniper scope home and tests different angles in the woods near his house. 

When he’s bored he practices the hard look in the mirror. He gets his balls busted mercilessly if he screws up. He plays pranks on his team members. He knows every type of weirdo and deranged person he might encounter and points them out to friends when he drives by. 

He laughs at their problems and weirdness. The only form he fills out is a standard logbook. He doesn’t sit by a computer doing HR training modules, because his training is lethal and fun. 

He knows where the edge is because he’s crossed it once or twice. And not in some hypothetical way but in a jungle somewhere with real consequences.

This guy isn’t always a good dad or upstanding citizen but he cares. He knows that if he fails he’ll lose the thing he loves most. His only fear is the shame that will cause. But he takes this one fear in stride and enjoys his work because it is fun and important.

That's the guy I want on the Trump protective detail and frankly the Biden detail.

I have family that are these guys, two nephews, a brother (who misses Route Irish) even a cousin a female who is part of the diplomatic protective unit. They are frankly just a little batshit crazy that's why they are awesome at their jobs. 

I'm not going to judge the Trump team, but they got lucky damn lucky. 

Still this was a command failure. Mayorkas and Cheatle should have been put of leave Saturday night and fired on Monday. Doesn't matter where the breakdown was or who wasn't at their post, the blame falls on command. 

The fact that Trump survived this attack, the fact that the shooter was nothing more than a deranged psychopath, the fact that the only victims are just ordinary people like you and me, and the fact that had Trump died conservatives would not have rioted in the streets emboldens liberals that support Biden and gives them justification to do exactly what Biden, Mayorkas and Cheatle are doing, nothing. 

Like the Americans held or killed by Hamas, those lost in Afghanistan killed or imprisoned by the Taliban, or by those held by Iran, imprisoned by China, arrested by Russia the Biden administration has done nothing. So you need to ask yourself is this the government you want protecting you?   

Illegal Immigrant from Honduras Arrested after Shooting Spree and Homicide

According to CMPD on July 9, 2024, at approximately 1:16 AM Metro Division officers responded to the 3800 block of Statesville Avenue in reference to shots fired call for service (20240709-0116-01), The 9-1-1 caller advised hearing multiple gunshots near the intersection of Jeff Adams Drive and Statesville Avenue.

Officers arrived on scene and located Chevrolet Equinox SUV stopped in the outbound lanes of Statesville Avenue scene.  just north of the Jeff Adams intersection. 

Officers located the victim, DOB: 01/12/1966, suffering from an apparent GSW to the abdomen seated in the driver's seat of the vehicle. 

MEDIC 50 arrived a short time later and pronounced the victim deceased at 1:22 AM.

During the investigation, detectives were able to link the suspect vehicle and discharged shell casings to multiple other shootings that occurred all within approximately 30-minute timeframe around the city. Detectives were able to confirm the same defendants also were involved in the following incidents:

20240709-0109-00 (Attempted Murder (x3), ADWIKISI, SIOV) 

20240709-0116-01 (1st Degree Murder, SIOV, Felony Conspiracy) 

20240709-0120-00 (Attempted Murder) 

20240709-0133-00 (Attempted Murder)

On July 11, 2024, at approximately 12:55 AM, 

CMPD officers-were conducting dedicated patrol in the Steele Creek division. They conducted traffic stop on black 2011 Honda Accord at the 400 block of East Arrowood Road. The vehicle matched the description of the suspect vehicle for series of shootings that occurred in the same area and in the Metro Division on July 9, 2024, starting at approximately 1:05 AM 

During the stop, officers developed probable cause to arrest the driver of the vehicle. The driver was identified as a juvenile. He was arrested at the scene and charged with carrying concealed weapon, possession of handgun by a minor, and possession of stolen firearm. The vehicle that he was driving was believed to be the suspect vehicle and contained evidence related to the above-listed shootings on July 9, 2024. 

The vehicle was towed to the CMPD Law Enforcement Center and searched for evidence related to the case. Juvenile was transported to the LEC and interviewed about the case. He waived his rights and agreed to talk without parent present. He stated that he and Carlos Roberto-Diaz (DOB 10/29/2005, 18 years of age) went to party and then drove around the city shooting at people. Juvenile admitted that he and Carlos shot at people in the Beattie's Ford Road /Lasalle Street area (Metro Division) and the South Boulevard area (Steele Creek Division). 

CMPD Detectives developed probable cause to arrest juvenile for the following shootings based on witness testimony, surveillance video images, physical evidence at scenes, and the admissions made by the juvenile.

The following cases were determined to be related:

20240709-0109-00 Catherine Simmons 

20240709-0116-01 Statesville Avenue

20240709-0133-00 Nations Ford Road

20240709-0120-00 Nations Ford Road

Detectives believed there is sufficient probable cause and then requested an arrest warrant against Carlos Roberto-Diaz (DOB 10/29/2005) for SIOD(x2), SIOV(x2), Attempted Murder(x5), ist Degree Murder, Felony Conspiracy, ADWIKISI.

In the afternoon hours of Thursday July 11, 2024, the CMPD’s Violent Criminal Apprehension Team (VCAT), with assistance from FBI Charlotte, located and arrested Mr. Diaz without incident and transported him to the Law Enforcement Center (LEC) in Uptown (601 E. Trade St.) to be interviewed by Homicide detectives.  

At the conclusion of the interview, Diaz was transferred into the custody of the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office. 

Carlos Roberto-Diaz Photo MCSO

The unnamed 16-year-old juvenile was transferred into the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice.

Both are being held pending additional bond hearings.

Based on the investigation, detectives believe the 16-year-old suspect intended to engage in additional violent criminal activity. Due to the great proactive work by officers and Homicide detectives, they likely prevented any additional harm to innocent victims.

The time frame, proximity, and evidence collected led detectives to believe the five shooting incidents that occurred between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, July 9 were linked.  Forensic lab testing has since confirmed at least three of those incidents are linked.  Lab testing will continue to determine if the additional incidents are linked.  

According to WSOC TV News Roberto-Diaz entered the US illegally in 2019 and was arrested by the CBP and released.