Ryan Routh represents himself in court docket as he faces 5 fees, together with an try and assassinate President Donald Trump.
Revealed On 11 Sep 2025
The legal trial for a person suspected of making an attempt to assassinate United States President Donald Trump final 12 months has began, coming at a time of heightened alarm over political violence within the US.
The trial started with opening statements on Thursday because the defendant, 59-year-old Ryan Routh, took the weird step of representing himself.
Routh faces 5 fees, together with trying to assassinate a presidential candidate, and faces the opportunity of life in jail if discovered responsible. He has pleaded not responsible to all the costs.
The proceedings got here sooner or later after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, a far-right media determine and shut Trump ally whose killing has raised alarm over the growing frequency of political violence within the US.
Routh stated in July that he would characterize himself in court docket, telling US District Court docket Decide Eileen Cannon that he didn’t desire a “random stranger” talking on his behalf. Two public defenders initially assigned to his case at the moment are serving on standby to help him with logistical duties.
Cannon lower Routh off on Thursday as he gave a collection of weird remarks on subjects that didn’t appear related to the case, such because the origin of the human species, the settling of the US frontier and worldwide conflicts. The jury was despatched out of the room after Routh stated the case meant “completely nothing”.
Prosecutors accuse Routh of hiding with a rifle subsequent to a golf course in an try and kill Trump on September 15, 2024, on the Trump Worldwide Golf Membership in West Palm Seashore, Florida.
Court docket paperwork said that the plot was foiled when a Secret Service agent observed a gun protruding from a fence and opened hearth. Routh then fled the realm earlier than being stopped and apprehended by police on a Florida freeway.
