Texas police assist at Republican National Convention after shooting

Officers with the McAllen Police Department are assisting with security at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, according to a Facebook post from the city on Monday, July 15. The support comes just days after former President Donald Trump survived an attempted assassination at his Pennsylvania rally.

Trump’s ear was grazed by a bullet at the rally on Saturday. The shooting set off panic as a bloodied Trump was surrounded by Secret Service and hurried into his vehicle. A former firefighter attending the rally with family was killed, as was the gunman.

After the incident, McAllen officials responded to a request by the Milwaukee Police Department to assist law enforcement in supporting the event and sent 10 officers. The McAllen Police Department joined other agencies across the county to assist at the convention that takes place from Monday to Thursday in Milwaukee.

“MPD hopes to gain additional experience securing mass gathering activities,” the City of McAllen wrote in its Facebook post.

The U.S. Secret Service increased local security measures in the days leading up to the event, during, and immediately following, according to a news release from the agency. The 2024 Republican National Convention has been designated a National Special Security Event by the Department of Homeland Security, a designation that is based in part on the event’s significance, size, and attendees.

Designating an event as an NSSE allows for significant resources from the federal government, as well as state and local partners, to be used to ensure a robust security plan is in place, according to the Secret Service.

More than a 100 law enforcement officers from Texas are set to attend, per a statement by Gov. Greg Abbott. 

“Texas has deployed law enforcement personnel to the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee to ensure there are ample security resources present to safeguard attendees. I thank the over 100 members of law enforcement who are dedicating a week of service to their fellow Americans in Wisconsin. Texas will always step up to ensure law and order and protect Americans,” Abbott said. The release went onto note the total number of officers per city which included 27 from Austin PD, 13 from Dallas PD, 46 from Fort Worth PD and 19 from McAllen.