Lee County reacts to shooting at Trump rally

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safety
Donald Trump grabs his ear after being shot

An assassination attempt on the former President of the United States, Donald Trump, has shocked the nation and the world.

People here in southwest Florida are also shaken by what happened at the Trump rally Saturday evening.

The bullet missed a direct hit by inches. It did skim Trump’s ear and he could be seen grabbing his right ear as he ducked amid gunfire. He was hauled away to safety by his Secret Service team.

The news of the shooting shook this community to its core, and many here in southwest Florida question how something like this could happen.

“I saw it.” said Danny Corra, “And I’m like, ‘people don’t show respect anymore’, as we’re not safe anymore in the world that we live in.”

Alex Smith and John Lacey were equally shocked by the news.

“I saw Donald Trump get shot in the ear and he was bleeding,” one person said. “We’ve never seen something like that before.”

“A little unsettling. You know, whether or not you’re for or against a candidate, when somebody’s, you know, that is saying that they want to take a life over it? It’s a little troubling to be honest with you.” said Paul Liberatory, a Fort Myers local.

WINK News Reporter Ashley French talked with people at Cape Coral parks.

They felt the shooting puts our nation in a vulnerable spot, adding more to the political divide. Some even said the United States is not united as a country when acts of violence are at the forefront.

“An outside perspective, you know, someone looking into the United States can look at it as a great divide and I think that makes us not only look vulnerable, but weak, you know? We need to be standing as a united front,” said Bailey Calloway. “At the end of the day, we’re all living here in the land of the free home of the brave.”

“Hatred is not part of it. Regardless of whether you dislike someone, hate is not it,” said Alex Medina, a parkgoer at Jaycee Park.

The people you heard from like many others in Lee County and across the country – are dealing with layers of emotions.

The investigation into the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, continues with the FBI taking the lead on the case.

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