Michigan law enforcement veteran discusses response to assassination attempt on Trump
(CBS DETROIT) - Following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania rally Saturday night, CBS News Detroit spoke with a 25-year veteran of the Oakland County Sheriff's Office who worked on a security detail for Trump.
Terence Mekoski is a law enforcement veteran and a former Michigan state representative. He's served on security teams for some of the biggest names in politics to come through Oakland County and Metro Detroit.
"The lengths that the Secret Service and all the law enforcement go through to protect the president and all of the dignitaries is second to none," said Mekoski.
"I had the pleasure of working many executive protection details for not only President Trump and his family but Bush and Obama, the Clintons when I worked with the sheriff's department assisting secret service."
Mekoski says everyone, from local to federal, has a hand in high-profile events like this, where they are prepared for the worst.
"Well, you see what happens. Secret Service, law enforcement sprung into action. They surrounded the president; they put their bodies in harm's way. You see Secret Service and all of the other law enforcement officers get a hard perimeter right around him. They secured a vehicle to take the president with them. I'm sure there was medical standing by closely. A quick escort to the closest hospital facility, which is planned out in pre-planning. This is all staged out as if it would occur every time," Mekoski said.
Mekoski says security for events of this caliber is planned weeks or even months in advance. He says something like what we saw in Butler, Pennsylvania, can happen to anyone, at any place, at any time.
"We have to, as Americans, we have to realize tomorrow is going to come. We're going to be okay, but we're going to have to continuously work to make our country better and great again," he said.