Weapons & Guns

Alec Baldwin is not done with New Mexico's legal system -- it looks like he's planning to legally go after the Santa Fe County Sheriff and the prosecutor in his "Rust" shooting case.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the actor's lawyers put Santa Fe sheriff Adan Mendoza and special prosecutor Kari Morrissey on notice ... instructing them to save all relevant info related to his now-dismissed manslaughter trial.

In a pair of preservation notices fired off this week, Alec's legal team told the prosecutor and sheriff to hold onto any emails, text messages, hard drives, documents, records and materials related to the investigation and prosecutions connected with Halyna Hutchins' shooting death.

The guy who tried assassinating Donald Trump had an active Discord account ... but he never mentioned violence or his murderous plans on the platform, TMZ has learned.

As you know ... Thomas Matthew Crooks fired several shots at DT last weekend, striking the ex-Prez in the ear. Before the shooting, the suspect was reportedly active on gaming and messaging platforms.

One of those sites, as it turns out, was Discord ... but the company tells us that after a thorough investigation, they found no messages from his account suggesting he had a plan afoot to try to take out Trump ... let alone any other rumblings of future real-world violence.

Donald Trump's assassination attempt has put law enforcement under even more scrutiny ... 'cause now, we know the shooter was spotted on the roof for a LONG time before firing.

According to multiple outlets ... during Thursday's briefing with U.S. Senators, the Secret Service revealed they spotted shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks on the roof preparing to shoot Donald Trump 20 minutes before he fired the first bullet.

The official timeline, according to ABC News, TMC first came to the Secret Service's attention as a person of interest at 5:10 PM ET on Saturday, more than an hour before the shooting.

"The Boys" series is making one key change to its season 4 finale due to the shooting of Donald Trump, because the episode has some striking parallels to the assassination attempt.

The Prime Video drama's episode was originally named "Assassination Run" and centered on the main characters trying to thwart a plot to kill the president. Following Saturday's shooting at Trump's rally, those at Prime Video clearly wanted to avoid being associated with violence ... as they chose to retitle the episode to simply say "Season 4 Finale."

The series also issued a warning before the episode, in which they emphasized the fictional political violence -- written, filmed and edited long before last weekend -- was "completely coincidental and unintentional."

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle faced 4 furious Senators at the RNC this week ... who gave her an ultimatum -- resign that evening or start answering their questions, and the clash was caught on video.

It was all captured in a clip posted to X -- GOP Sens. Marsha Blackburn, John Barrasso, James Lankford, and Kevin Cramer were all over Cheatle at the Milwaukee convention Wednesday ... basically saying none of her answers from her earlier briefing were cutting it.

In the briefing, details were revealed on how Trump shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, had been flagged as suspicious by the Secret Service almost an hour before Trump's assassination attempt.

The world is learning more about Thomas Matthew Crooks -- and we've got additional insight from his former peers and even a teacher, who says he was smart ... but notably solitary.

TMZ spoke with a couple of Crooks' ex-classmates from Bethel Park High School -- who were in his graduating class -- and both of them, who asked not to have their names released, tell us they knew him as a loner, but not one prone to violence.

We're told Crooks was seen as quiet and keeping to himself in class ... as well as during lunch, when we're told he'd often sit and eat by himself.

TMZ has obtained a new angle of the shooting at the Donald Trump rally this weekend -- and you can see how close some people were to getting hit by bullets.

Check out this footage we got a hold of -- which captures folks in the stands right behind Trump and right underneath the monitor he was referring to in describing a graph detailing the border situation ... with a ton of people right below it looking on.

You can hear DT speaking and making his typical talking points -- and out of nowhere ... you hear what sounds like 3 shots ring out ... with bullets ricocheting off the metal railings.

Donald Trump took a bullet to the ear Saturday, but more than one was fired -- and, new video shows the moment one of the projectiles hit a railing ... and possibly a spectator too.

The clip -- which is now circulating on social media -- shows the seconds after 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks fired toward the stage Saturday in Butler, PA ... picking up as one of the bullets ricochets off the far railing of the stands and sends people scrambling.

Watch ... the noise from the shot rings out, and a small puff of smoke explodes into the air as the bullet strikes the metal rail. Two people standing nearby immediately react.

The man convicted of killing rapper Slim 400 was just sentenced to several decades behind bars.

On Wednesday, L.A. native Michael Terry was sentenced to 32 years in prison on Monday after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter for Slim's December 2021 shooting death.

Terry previously admitted to pulling up to a residence in Inglewood where Terry gunned down Slim in his own front yard.

Eric Trump is furious with the security lapses leading up to the assassination attempt on his father ... and says a competent shooter wouldn't have missed his target.

Donald Trump's son expanded on his father's brush with death in an interview with "CBS Evening News" anchor Norah O'Donnell ... saying it's hard to believe Thomas Matthew Crooks was able to fire at the former president from close range.

Eric says he grew up competing in shooting sports and a "rifle shot from 130 yards is like a four-inch putt ... you don't miss it if you're competent." A golf analogy for the Trumps is pretty on brand.

Thomas Matthew Crooks wasn't a fan of Donald Trump years before attempting to assassinate the former Prez ... so says one of his former classmates.

Vincent Taormina -- who went to high school with the would-be assassin -- spoke with FOX News about Thomas' political beliefs leading up to Saturday's attack ... and he says TMC didn't like politicians, period. However, he apparently really recoiled at the thought of DT.

Vince says he and Thomas had gotten into a heated debate ahead of the 2016 presidential election -- and he describes the guy as smug and arrogant when discussing topics he was passionate about, which included politics apparently.

Thomas Matthew Crooks was a member at a local gun club in Pennsylvania -- and even went a day before firing upon Donald Trump -- but he didn't leave a lasting impression on very many people who regularly go there ... TMZ has learned.

We've called around and connected with a handful of current members at the Clairton Sportsmen's Club -- not far from Crooks' home -- and the answer we got from just about all of them was the same ... nobody had ever heard of this guy before Saturday's shooting.

Bob Wolanin -- a longtime Clairton member -- tells us the name and face didn't stand out to him at all ... and ditto for another member and even a current worker at the club -- who didn't want their names out there -- but who relayed a similar sentiment ... namely, Thomas was a ghost as far as they're concerned.

New footage appears to show would-be Donald Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks lurking in the background of the rally ... an hour before he shot at the former president.

In video recorded by a man who attended Saturday's rally, you can see a person matching Crooks' description -- and he's pacing around the event's perimeter, just on the outskirts of the main event ... right by the building Crooks climbed an hour later to take aim at Trump.

The footage was obtained by WTAE-TV Pittsburgh ... and the Trump supporter who filmed it says when he looked over his footage and noticed Crooks in the background, he couldn't sleep ... let alone believe he'd captured the shooter inadvertently.

John Hinckley Jr. is speaking on the Donald Trump shooting -- and his position might take some people by surprise ... 'cause he's condemning the attempted assassination.

The ex-con -- who shot Ronald Reagan in the '80s -- took to social media Wednesday to address the fact Thomas Matthew Crooks tried putting a bullet in Trump's head ... the first attempted assassination on a current/former Prez since Hinckley did what he did.

He writes, "Violence is not the way to go. Give peace a chance."

Thomas Matthew Crooks trying to kill Donald Trump seems to have come out of left field -- 'cause his parents didn't know where he was that day ... and called the authorities about it.

According to FOX News ... the gunman's mom and dad were looking for their 20-year-old son Saturday not long before he showed up in Butler, PA for the Trump rally -- only to perch himself on a roof and open fire on the ex-Prez, which cost him his life.

Thomas' mom and dad reportedly called the authorities about his MIA status BEFORE he opened fire at the rally ... which left retired volunteer fire chief Corey Comperatore dead.

A Donald Trump-owned website is selling sneakers featuring the iconic image of the former United States President just moments after he was shot and nearly assassinated ... with the limited edition kicks costing $299!

And, they're selling fast.

In addition to the historic photo, the high tops also say, "Fight, Fight, Fight" ... the words Trump yelled moments after the gunfire subsided.