'So frightening': Photographer recounts Trump's near miss with bullet

'You never think about something like this ever happening because it is so frightening,' said the New York Times photographer

Former US president Donald Trump narrowly escaped an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania on July 13. The moment, captured by seasoned New York Times photographer Doug Mills, shows the bullet streaking just behind the 78-year-old leader's face after grazing his right ear.

Doug Mills, a veteran photographer who has been covering US presidents since 1983, explained the extraordinary circumstances under which he captured the image.

“It happened so fast, but now I can see it all in slow motion. I was taking pictures when the pops started happening. I just happened to have my finger on the shutter, and I heard the pops and kept shooting," Mills recalled. 

“I didn't know what I had captured, but when I got to my laptop, I could see that bullet flying behind his head because it is definitely not in the frames right before it, and it's not in afterwards. It's only that one frame. I was shooting in 1/1,800 of a second. It captured that streak behind him,” he said.

The photograph reveals a long white streak behind Trump’s head, marking the apparent path of the bullet used in the assassination attempt. Mills expressed his disbelief at witnessing and photographing such a moment. “I never thought I'd ever see an assassination attempt on a President and be there to photograph it,” he said.

 

Mills attributed his ability to capture the crucial moments to his extensive experience and instinct. “I've covered the president for 40+ years and I’ve always known which way they come onstage and which way they go off. And the closest stairs were to my right, so I ran over to that side and witnessed him being helped up to his feet. My immediate reaction was, 'Oh my God! He is alive.'”

Describing Trump’s initial reaction after realising he had survived the attempt, Mills said, “All of a sudden, he got near the edge of the stage and raised his fist in defiance. I could see the blood on his face, and that defiance went away in a split second. He became very serious. I thought he looked very pale.”

Mills reflected on the gravity of the situation, saying, “Two very different moments happened in a matter of seconds. It is a moment unlike any in my lifetime, my history, my job of covering the White House since 1983. You never think about something like this ever happening because it is so frightening.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) identified the assassin as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was shot down by Secret Service snipers after firing multiple shots at the former President from a nearby rooftop. Witnesses claimed they had tried to warn security officials about a man moving from roof to roof and laying on his stomach with a gun pointed at the rally.