Former President Trump escapes assassination bid. There is a disturbing history of targeting top US leaders

2. James A Garfield (1881)

Barely six months after taking office, the 20th President of the United States, James A Garfield, was shot in the back and shoulder at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station in Washington, D.C. on July 2, 1881. The President was on his way to deliver a speech at his alma mater Williams College, and had to pass through the station. The shooter, Charles J. Guiteau, was a supporter of Vice-President Chester A Arthur and wished to see him ascend to the Oval Office. Garfield died of his injuries two months later.

3. William McKinley (1901)

The 25th President, William McKinley, was six months into his second term when he was shot twice in the abdomen at close range while attending the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York on September 6, 1901. McKinley died of gangrene from his wounds eight days later, aged 56. Leon Czolgosz was charged with his murder. This incident supposedly expanded the mandate of the US Secret Service to Presidential protection.

4. John F Kennedy (1963)

The 35th President, John F Kennedy, was fatally shot in the head while riding with his wife and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy in an open convertible in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. He was gearing up to announce his re-election campaign. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested for the shooting, and the police claimed he was motivated by personal reasons and disillusionment with the establishment. Several conspiracy theories continue to surround the case to date.