FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) — A man charged with trying to assassinate Donald Trump while he played golf last year in South Florida wanted to ask potential jurors Monday on the first day of jury selection about their views on the war in Gaza and the talk of the U.S. acquiring Greenland, but a judge said those questions were irrelevant.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon earlier had signed off on Ryan Routh’s request to represent himself but said court-appointed attorneys needed to remain as standby counsel. Routh also wanted to ask jurors what they would do if they were driving and saw a turtle in the road.
The judge on Monday approved most of the other questions for jurors submitted by prosecutors.
Routh wore a gray sports coat, red tie with white stripes and khaki slacks, in accordance with Cannon's instructions that he be dressed in professional business attire, and he was partially shackled at the defense table. Three batches of 60 jurors arrived at the federal courtroom in Fort Pierce, Florida, on a staggered schedule Monday and spent the morning filling out questionnaires.
The court has blocked off four weeks for Routh's trial, but attorneys are expecting they’ll need less time.
Jury selection was expected to take three days in an effort to find 12 jurors and four alternates. Opening statements were scheduled to begin Thursday, and prosecutors will begin their case immediately after that.
At a hearing last week, Cannon explained to Routh that he would be allowed to use a podium while speaking to the jury or questioning witnesses, but he would not have free rein of the courtroom.
Cannon is a Trump-appointed judge who drew scrutiny for her handling of a criminal case accusing Trump of illegally storing classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach. The case became mired in delays as motions piled up over months, and was ultimately dismissed by Cannon last year after she concluded that the special counsel tapped by the Justice Department to investigate Trump was illegally appointed.
Routh's trial begins nearly a year after prosecutors say a U.S. Secret Service agent thwarted Routh's attempt to shoot the Republican presidential nominee. Routh, 59, has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal officer and several firearm violations.
Just nine weeks earlier, Trump had survived another attempt on his life while campaigning in Pennsylvania. That gunman had fired eight shots, with one bullet grazing Trump's ear, before being shot by a Secret Service counter sniper.
Prosecutors have said Routh methodically plotted to kill Trump for weeks before aiming a rifle through the shrubbery as Trump played golf on Sept. 15, 2024, at his West Palm Beach country club. A Secret Service agent spotted Routh before Trump came into view. Officials said Routh aimed his rifle at the agent, who opened fire, causing Routh to drop his weapon and flee without firing a shot.
Law enforcement obtained help from a witness who prosecutors said informed officers that he saw a person fleeing. The witness was then flown in a police helicopter to a nearby interstate where Routh was arrested, and the witnesses confirmed it was the person he had seen, prosecutors have said.
The judge last week unsealed the prosecutor's 33-page list of exhibits that could be introduced as evidence at the trial. It says prosecutors have photos of Routh holding the same model of semi-automatic rifle found at Trump's club.
Routh was a North Carolina construction worker who in recent years had moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Routh spoke out to anyone who would listen about his dangerous, sometimes violent plans to insert himself into conflicts around the world, witnesses have told The Associated Press.
In the early days of the war in Ukraine, Routh tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to fight the Russians. In his native Greensboro, North Carolina, he was arrested in 2002 for eluding a traffic stop and barricading himself from officers with a fully automatic machine gun and a “weapon of mass destruction,” which turned out to be an explosive with a 10-inch fuse.
In 2010, police searched a warehouse Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen items, from power tools and building supplies to kayaks and spa tubs. In both felony cases, judges gave Routh either probation or a suspended sentence.
In addition to the federal charges, Routh also has pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.
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FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) — A federal trial is scheduled to begin Monday for a man charged with trying to assassinate Donald Trump as he played golf in Florida in September 2024.
Jury selection is expected to take three days, with attorneys questioning three sets of 60 prospective jurors. They’re trying to find 12 jurors and four alternates. Opening statements are scheduled to begin Thursday, and prosecutors will begin their case immediately after that. The court has blocked off four weeks for the trial, but attorneys are expecting they’ll need less time.
Here’s what to know about the case.
The judge lets Routh represent himself
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon signed off in July on Ryan Routh’s request to represent himself during his trial, but said court-appointed attorneys need to remain as standby counsel.
The judge told Routh she believes it’s a bad idea for Routh to represent himself, but he wouldn’t be dissuaded. Routh, who has described the extent of his education as two years of college after earning his GED certificate, told Cannon that he understood the potential challenges and would be ready.
Cannon confirmed during a hearing earlier this week that Routh would be dressed in professional business attire for the trial. She also explained to Routh that he would be allowed to use a podium while speaking to the jury or questioning witnesses, but he would not have free rein of the courtroom.
“If you make any sudden movements, marshals will take decisive and quick action to respond,” Cannon said.
Routh is a self-styled mercenary leader
The 59-year-old Routh was a North Carolina construction worker who in recent years had moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Routh spoke out to anyone who would listen about his dangerous, sometimes violent plans to insert himself into conflicts around the world, witnesses have told The Associated Press.
In the early days of the war in Ukraine, Routh tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to fight the Russians. In his native Greensboro, North Carolina, he had a 2002 arrest for eluding a traffic stop and barricading himself from officers with a fully automatic machine gun and a “weapon of mass destruction,” which turned out to be an explosive with a 10-inch-long fuse.
In 2010, police searched a warehouse Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen items, from power tools and building supplies to kayaks and spa tubs. In both felony cases, judges gave Routh either probation or a suspended sentence.
Routh is charged with attempted assassination
Authorities said Routh tried to assassinate Trump, the Republican nominee for presidential, while he played golf at his golf club in West Palm Beach.
Routh is facing five felony counts in federal court in Fort Pierce. They include attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate; possessing a firearm to carry out a violent crime; assaulting a federal officer; felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition; and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
In addition to the federal charges, Routh also has pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.
Same judge presided over Trump case
Cannon is the same judge who presided over another high-profile case involving Trump — the classified documents case.
Last year, Cannon sided with Trump’s lawyers who said the special counsel who filed the charges was illegally appointed by the U.S. Justice Department. Cannon’s ruling halted a criminal case that at the time it was filed was widely regarded as the most perilous of all the legal threats the president faced before he returned to office last January.
Cannon was a former federal prosecutor who was nominated to the bench by Trump in 2020.
Trump was not hurt by Routh
Trump was uninjured, and there’s no evidence that Routh fired his weapon at the golf course. U.S. Secret Service agents stationed a few holes up from where Trump was playing golf noticed the muzzle of an AK-style rifle sticking through the shrubbery that lines the course, roughly 400 yards away. An agent fired, and the gunman dropped the rifle and fled in an SUV, leaving the firearm behind along with two backpacks, a scope used for aiming and a GoPro camera. He was later stopped by law enforcement in a neighboring county.
Last September’s alleged assassination attempt took place just nine weeks after Trump survived another attempt on his life in Pennsylvania.