Baseless claims linking Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee's death and Trump rally shooting spread online

Madison Czopek
·6 min read
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U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, second from left, died July 19 after announcing last month that she had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. QAnon-linked groups are pushing a baseless theory linking her death to oversight of the Secret Service and the Trump shooting.
U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, second from left, died July 19 after announcing last month that she had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. QAnon-linked groups are pushing a baseless theory linking her death to oversight of the Secret Service and the Trump shooting.
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Statement: The death of Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston, six days after the Trump rally shooting was linked to her “Oversight of the Secret Service.”

Kimberly Cheatle resigned July 23 as U.S. Secret Service director after lawmakers sharply criticized her agency’s actions leading up to the July 13 assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.

A day before she resigned, Cheatle deflected many questions from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle as she testified before the Republican-led House Oversight Committee and faced bipartisan calls to step down.

"Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle confirmed that Rep. Shiela Jackson was involved in the Oversight of the Secret Service," said a July 22 X post in what appeared to be a misspelled reference to Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston. "Rep. Jackson passed away 6 days after the assassination attempt on Donald Trump. This is one of the strangest coincidences of the year."

The post included a clip of Cheatle’s testimony in which she gave her condolences over Jackson Lee’s death. It was shared by "Dom Lucre," an X account known to promote misinformation and the QAnon conspiracy theory, which posits that powerful, left-leaning politicians and entertainers are involved with a Satan-worshipping pedophile ring.

Another X account known to promote QAnon and misinformation also shared the clip of Cheatle’s testimony, noting Secret Service oversight by Jackson Lee and saying that she "was confirmed dead six days after the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump. Just another coincidence right?"

Claims like these were also shared on Facebook and Instagram.

Jackson Lee died July 19 at age 74. She had served as a Houston judge and City Council member before being elected to Texas’ 18th Congressional District seat in 1994, CNN reported. She was a mother and grandmother and was among the first women to graduate from Yale University. She had served as whip of the Congressional Black Caucus and at the time of her death was a vice chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and a chief deputy whip for House Democrats.

"Today, with incredible grief for our loss yet deep gratitude for the life she shared with us, we announced the passing of United States Representative Sheila Jackson Lee of the 18th Congressional District of Texas," a July 19 statement from her family said. "She will be dearly missed, but her legacy will continue to inspire all who believe in freedom, justice, and democracy."

Although a cause of death has not been publicly reported, Jackson Lee said in June that she had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. We contacted a spokesperson for Jackson Lee’s office and received no response before publication.

There is no evidence that her death is considered suspicious. The claims that Jackson Lee’s death was somehow linked to oversight of the U.S. Secret Service followed remarks in Cheatle’s congressional testimony.

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned after brutal questioning over security lapses at Donald Trump's rally in Butler, Pa.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned after brutal questioning over security lapses at Donald Trump's rally in Butler, Pa.

In her opening statement, Cheatle first acknowledged that the assassination attempt was "the most significant operational failure of the Secret Service in decades."

She offered condolences to the family of rally attendee Corey Comperatore, who was killed in the attack, and wished the other two men injured in Butler, Pa., "a speedy recovery."

"I would be remiss if I did not also extend my condolences on the passing of your colleague, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee," Cheatle said. "Ms. Jackson Lee was always engaged in the oversight of the Secret Service, and her passing is a great loss to this body."

Cheatle was addressing a room of Jackson Lee’s fellow House members, but Jackson Lee was not a member of the Oversight Committee when she died.

Social media users seized on Cheatle’s comments about Jackson Lee, who had been a senior member of the House Judiciary, Homeland Security and Budget committees.

We searched using Google and Nexis and found no reliable news reports claiming that Jackson Lee's death was connected to Secret Service oversight work or the Trump rally shooting.

The Secret Service is part of the Department of Homeland Security, so some of Jackson Lee’s Homeland Security Committee work might have involved the Secret Service. But we found no reports showing Jackson Lee’s work focused specifically on the Secret Service. We contacted the Secret Service to ask what "oversight" Cheatle had referred to and received no response before publication.

After the assassination attempt on Trump, Jackson Lee condemned political violence and acknowledged the Secret Service’s protective efforts.

"My thoughts and well wishes are with former President Trump and his family — I wish him a speedy recovery," she said. "Reports inform that he is safe through the swift actions of Secret Service Agents."

She described the Trump rally attack as "deeply disturbing."

"Political violence has no place in the United States," she said. "This incident should be a catalyst for renewing our commitment to not allow violence to infect the political life of our nation."

PolitiFact's ruling

Social media posts linked Jackson Lee’s death six days after the Trump rally shooting to her "oversight of the Secret Service."

Jackson Lee's cause of death has not been publicly reported, but she said in June that she had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. We found nothing to support claims that her death was connected to Secret Service oversight.

We rate this claim False.

PolitiFact researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.

Our sources

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: No evidence links Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s death to Trump shooting