Guns are woven into the life of shooter's hometown

Guns and hunting are deeply woven into the culture of smaller boroughs and rural areas of Pennsylvania where Thomas Crooks grew up.

Thomas Crooks did not have to look far beyond his hometown in western Pennsylvania to find opportunities to arm himself, buy ammunition and practice shooting before he headed to a political rally last weekend and tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump.

Guns and hunting are deeply woven into the culture of smaller boroughs and rural areas of Pennsylvania where he grew up, just as they are across much of a country with an estimated 400 million firearms. The gunman's high school, in the Pittsburgh suburb of Bethel Park, has had a rifle team since the 1950s, and it is not uncommon for students to skip a day of school during white-tailed deer season or come to class dressed in camouflage.

"Out in the suburbs, it's a bit more common to practice these things," said Keith Bartosch, a member of the Clairton Sportsmen's Club, where the gunman had also been a member. "From my house, I can hear at least four different sports clubs' shooting, depending on which way the wind's blowing."

Now, Clairton and other private gun clubs, shooting ranges and gun dealers that speckle the rolling wooded countryside around Bethel Park are being scrutinized by federal investigators who are trying to unravel how the gunman armed himself and learn more about his history with weapons.

The shooting which killed one rally attendee and critically wounded two others has also reignited a debate over whether stricter gun laws could have stopped Crooks or kept the AR-15-style rifle he used out of his hands.

Advocates for tighter gun restrictions in Pennsylvania seized on the shooting to urge state lawmakers to pass bills already introduced into the state legislature that would expand background checks, temporarily remove guns from potentially dangerous people and raise the minimum age to purchase rifles similar to the one used in the attack to 21 from 18.

"There is a bipartisan interest in making sure we keep guns out of the hands of people like this gunman," said Adam Garber, executive director of CeaseFirePA, which supports stricter gun laws.

But such measures might not have prevented the gunman, who was 20, from getting his hands on a rifle. Law enforcement officials said that the AR-15-style gun used in the shooting had belonged to Crooks' father, who legally purchased it in 2013. They said the gunman's father owns more than a dozen firearms of different types.

"If someone is determined to assassinate a political leader, they're going to find a way to do it," said Val Finnell, Pennsylvania state director of Gun Owners of America, a gun rights group that opposes the proposed new restrictions. "You're not going to stop an assassin by making laws."

It is unclear whether Crooks would have raised any red flags on background check systems. Federal investigators said he was not on their radar and did not appear to have a history of mental illness. He did not have a criminal record in Pennsylvania's court databases.

Investigators have not said how the gunman obtained the rifle on the day of the shooting or whether it had been locked up. Pennsylvania does not have laws requiring guns to be stored safely inside people's homes.

The gunman also bought about 50 rounds of ammunition just before the shooting, law enforcement officials said.

One gun store that has been contacted by investigators is Allegheny Arms & Gun Works, which is tucked next to a tanning salon in a travel plaza in Bethel Park and displays more than 1,000 firearms in glass cases and tidy lines along the walls.

The store's owners declined to confirm news reports that their store had sold ammunition to Crooks; they said only that they were cooperating with investigators and had not sold him any firearms.

But Bruce Piendl, one of the owners, defended the store as a "responsible member of our community" that was supporting a way of life by selling guns to hunters and sports shooters.

"We're not evil people," he said. "We understand. We live here, and our products are out in the community."

While hunting for white-tailed deer, pheasant and grouse has long been popular in the area, he said, the number of gun ranges and shooting clubs around Pittsburgh has grown in recent years, reflecting an enthusiasm for target practice and marksmanship.

Josh Rowe, another owner of the store, said his lifelong fascination with guns began when a friend showed him a copy of the "Guns and Ammo" magazine when he was a teenager. When he was 16, his grandfather bought him his first shotgun, and he now owns more than 100 guns, he said.

When asked whether his opinions of guns had changed after the attempted assassination of Trump, which had hit so close to home, Rowe, 46, was adamant.

"Not a bit," he said. "Absolutely not."

At the Clairton club, a wooded facility that features a 200-yard rifle range, members and former members have spent the days since the shooting fielding calls from the news media and investigators about their contacts with Crooks.

In interviews, no members recalled seeing Crooks at the range, which is about a half-hour drive from the gunman's home. But one former member said he could well have shot without drawing much notice. Former high school classmates who graduated with Crooks in 2022 described him as quiet and solitary, saying that he would go out of his way to avoid attention.

"There's a real good possibility that he could have just gone down there during the day on time and shot by himself," said Mark Mikolaj, a former board member. "Nobody would have ever known him."

The presidents of three other clubs in the area said the gunman had not been a member and could not be found in their guest records.

At Clairton, current and former members described the club as a mostly volunteer-run nonprofit organization that is popular with service members, law enforcement officers and families. It draws people who want to learn how to shoot, hone their skills with shotguns and rifles, or practice shooting clay pigeons. The club has 2,100 associates, according to its latest tax return.

Although its members are largely conservative, political signs are not allowed at the club, and most members prefer to avoid political arguments while they are shooting, members said.

Mark Entress, a former attendee, disputed the idea that recreational shooters or hunters in the area were part of a "quote-unquote gun culture" and said that they were simply trying to work on their gun skills and enjoy a sport with a deep history and appeal in the region.

"It's not like a militant thing," he said. "Most of these places are set up as just exactly that -- it's a sporting affair where you work on skills and sportsmanship and conduct and that kind of stuff."

He added: "It's a little community. So it's tragic to hear something like this."