Who Is Doug Mills, Photographer Who Captured Bullet That Hit Trump’s Ear

Former US President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday, July 13. The shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, shot at the former US President and the bullet grazed Trump’s ear. According to reports, the shooter was gunned down by Secret Service snipers.

One rally attendee died during the shooting while two others were critically injured. The shocking incident was captured by veteran photojournalist Doug Mills, who works with The New York Times. He appeared to capture the exact moment when the bullet whizzed past Trump’s head leaving behind a white streak, revealing its apparent path. The now-viral photo is making waves on the internet. 

Here are 5 points on Doug Mills: 

1. Doug Mills was born in Greensboro, N.C., in 1960. He studied at Northern Virginia Community College in Alexandria, Virginia. He lives with his wife and two daughters. 

2. Mr Mills has been covering US presidents since 1983, starting from Ronald Reagan. He started working in the Washington bureau of The New York Times in 2002. 

3. Before joining The New York Times, Mr Mills served as chief photographer for The Associated Press (AP) in Washington for 15 years. After four years of service with United Press International’s Washington bureau, he joined The AP.

4. In 1993, Mr. Mills was honoured with a Pulitzer Prize for AP’s joint coverage of the Clinton/Gore campaign. He received a second Pulitzer Prize for his joint investigative coverage with AP of the Clinton/Lewinsky affair. In 2020 and 2023, the White House Correspondents’ Association presented Mr Mills with the Award for Excellence in Presidential News Coverage by Visual Journalists. 

5. Mr Mills is also quite adept at photographing sports. He has covered popular sporting events like the World Series, and Super Bowls, and golf majors such as the Masters and 16 Olympics.