(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The Bethel Park Police Department has refused to release the phone call alleged Trump shooter Thomas Crooks’ parents made to law enforcement on the day of his July 13 assassination attempt—deeming it not in the public interest to do so.
Information about the phone call made by the parents, Matthew and Mary Crooks, was first reported on July 17 by Fox News, which said they called police before the attack with a warning. But CBS and other outlets later reported that the father made that phone call after the attack.
It still hasn’t been confirmed when the Crookses called or what they said—and Bethel Park Police apparently doesn’t think the public has the right to know.
Bethel Park Police made their position on the matter clear in response to Headline USA’s Aug. 12 Pennsylvania Right-To-Know Law request for “recordings of any and all calls made by the parent or parents of Thomas Crooks . . . on the day that Crooks shot at Donald Trump … [and] any other documentation Bethel Police have of any calls, including reports or internal communications as a result of the calls.”
Bethel Police denied the request on Aug. 21, citing Section 708(b)(18) of the RTKL, which exempts 911 recordings from public disclosure.
However, the exact same RTKL paragraph cited by Bethel Police also states that law enforcement can release 911 recordings that are in the public interest. “This paragraph shall not apply to a 911 recording, or a transcript of a 911 recording, if the agency or a court determines that the public interest in disclosure outweighs the interest in nondisclosure,” Section 708(b)(18)(ii) states.
EXCLUSIVE: Bethel Park Police have deemed that it's not in the public interest to release the phone call Trump shooter Thomas Crooks’ parents made to law enforcement on the day of his assassination attempt
In its denial, Bethel Police cited Section 708(b)(18) of the RTKL, which… pic.twitter.com/q7ddXzPEsU— Ken Silva (@JD_Cashless) September 9, 2024
Headline USA appealed the denial to the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records, and made the argument to Appeals Officer Kathleen Higgins that it’s in the public interest to release the parents’ phone call.
“Disclosing the audio of the phone call would remove this ambiguity [of when the parents called]—and shed further light on law enforcement’s response to the threat Crooks posed on July 13,” this reporter wrote in his submission last Thursday. “Furthermore, it’s in the public interest to know the contents of the phone call—i.e. what the parents told law enforcement.”
Surprisingly, Bethel Park Police nor Alleghany County didn’t make any submissions in the appeals case. In Headline USA’s appeals for Crooks’s autopsy records, Alleghany County and Butler County have submitted briefs and affidavits arguing against disclosure.
Since Bethel Park made no argument in the appeals case, Headline USA sent a follow-up email on Friday—asking police to reconsider disclosing the phone call in the public interest. Officials did not respond.
The Office of Open Records is set to make a final determination on the parents’ call by Oct. 23.
Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.
