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Are there credible news reports or medical records confirming Trump was shot?
Executive summary
Contemporary mainstream reporting and public records show that former President Donald Trump survived two high-profile assassination attempts in 2024 — a July rally in Butler, Pennsylvania where he was struck near the ear and a September incident at his West Palm Beach golf club — and that reporting and official documents describe injuries and legal actions but do not produce widely released full hospital records for Trump himself [1] [2] [3]. Multiple fact-checks and news organizations also document fake or fabricated “leaked” medical sheets circulating online and note that Trump’s campaign initially provided limited medical detail, later releasing selective physician statements [4] [3] [5].
1. What happened: the events mainstream outlets describe
Reporting establishes that on July 13, 2024 a gunman, later identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, opened fire at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania; the shot grazed Trump’s upper right ear and killed the shooter and at least one other person, according to contemporary mainstream coverage and the Wikipedia summary of the incident [1] [6]. A separate September 15, 2024 incident at Trump International in West Palm Beach resulted in an indictment of Ryan Wesley Routh for attempting to kill Trump, per Department of Justice documents and later reporting [2] [7].
2. Medical records: what has been released and what hasn’t
News organizations — including the AP, PBS, WHYY and Newsweek — reported that Trump’s campaign initially released no full medical records or detailed hospital reports after the Butler rally, leaving the public dependent on the campaign’s limited statements and occasional physician notes [3] [8] [9]. Later, selective medical summaries and physician statements were posted or discussed publicly (for example campaign updates and physician Ronny Jackson’s comments), but multiple outlets noted the absence of comprehensive, independently published hospital records immediately after the shooting [5] [10].
3. Fake documents and misinformation in circulation
Fact-checkers at AFP and local outlets established that several purported “leaked” medical records of Trump circulating on social media after the rally were fabrications originating from satirical or parody accounts; state health officials confirmed some of those documents were fake [4] [11] [12]. Reporting cautioned that while questions about transparency persisted, specific “leaked” forms widely shared online were not authentic [4] [11].
4. Official investigations and related medical records for the shooter
While Trump’s full hospital records were not publicly released in detail by the campaign early on, congressional and investigative bodies did obtain medical records related to the shooter: the bipartisan House task force obtained autopsy and related medical materials for Thomas Crooks as part of its inquiry [13]. That reporting demonstrates investigators obtained some medical-forensic records tied to the event, even as the former candidate’s private treatment records remained limited in the public domain [13] [3].
5. Competing narratives and political reactions
Media coverage recorded competing theories and political spin: outlets like the Associated Press documented conspiracy narratives online that the Butler shooting had been staged or orchestrated, and some public figures promoted speculative claims — while mainstream outlets focused on official accounts, indictments, and law-enforcement findings [1]. Separately, some elected officials and commentators advanced conspiratorial takes [14], which fact-based reporting and official filings did not substantiate [1] [2].
6. Bottom line for the question “Are there credible news reports or medical records confirming Trump was shot?”
Credible news reporting documents that Trump was shot/grazed at the July 13, 2024 Butler rally and later targeted again in Florida, and official legal filings and major news outlets covered his injuries and related prosecutions [1] [2] [7]. However, available sources show that comprehensive, independently released hospital records for Trump were not widely published immediately after the Butler incident and that several circulated “medical reports” were verified as fake [3] [4] [11]. If you are seeking full hospital charts or an unredacted medical record published in news outlets, available sources do not mention the release of such documents into the public domain [3] [5].
Limitations: this summary relies exclusively on the provided reporting and fact checks; it does not assert the existence of any medical documents beyond what those sources describe, nor does it adjudicate unsettled conspiracy claims that other actors have made [1] [4].