Updated

Updated · CNN · Jul 22

Secret Service Defends Dinner Security After Gunman Was Stopped 100 Yards From Podium

Updated

Updated · CNN · Jul 22

Secret Service Defends Dinner Security After Gunman Was Stopped 100 Yards From Podium

Q: Why was a security dog pulled away from a gunman it appeared to detect moments before his attack?

There is no confirmed public explanation yet for why the dog was pulled away, and the available reporting does not show that the animal definitively identified Allen as a threat. What is known is that surveillance footage reviewed after the April shooting appeared to show a Secret Service dog reacting to Allen shortly before the attack, with the handler then moving the dog away. But neither the Secret Service statements in the reporting nor the additional material provided explain the handler’s decision. In the absence of an official account, security experts say there are routine possibilities: the handler may not have interpreted the dog’s behavior as a clear alert, may have judged it to be a false or inconclusive reaction, or may have been following movement and screening protocols in a crowded hotel environment. Detection dogs are an important layer of security, but their signals still require human interpretation. That unanswered moment has become part of the broader scrutiny of the incident, especially because critics argue Allen was able to get dangerously close to the ballroom entrance before opening fire. Secret Service leaders have nonetheless maintained that the overall protective system worked because Allen was stopped more than 100 yards from President Trump and other protectees.

3 articles · Updated · CNN · Jul 22

Friday’s rescheduled White House Correspondents’ Dinner will proceed at the Waldorf Astoria, where the Secret Service says a new security plan is already in place.
More than 100 yards from the podium, agents stopped the April gunman after he rushed through a screening checkpoint and wounded one officer, which Director Sean Curran cited as proof the system worked.
More limited access points at the new venue and heavy local and federal police presence should help tighten security around the event, according to a law enforcement official.
Cole Allen has pleaded not guilty to attempting to assassinate the president and remains jailed, while Secret Service officials said threats against protectees are still rising and remain at their highest level in decades.