“U.S. District Court Judge Eileen Cannon sentenced Ryan Routh to life in prison without parole in the 2024 assassination attempt on then-presidential candidate Donald Trump on a golf course in Florida.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
Ryan Routh. Photo: Getty Images Source: Reuters, Associated Press
Details: Raut was convicted of five felony counts, including attempted assassination of a presidential candidate, illegal possession of a weapon and obstructing a federal officer during an arrest.
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Prosecutors sought a life sentence, while the defense asked for a 27-year sentence, citing the defendant’s “good heart” and concern for others.
Attorney Martin L. Roth argued that “at a crucial moment, he chose not to pull the trigger.”
It is noteworthy that the decision on life imprisonment was made by a judge who was appointed to this position in 2020 by Trump himself.
During the hearing, Judge Cannon emphasized the extreme seriousness of the crime and the defendant’s long history of offending, including 36 previous convictions.
“Ryan Routh will never go free again. His horrific attempt to assassinate President Trump was not only an attack on our president – it was a direct attack on our entire democratic system,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi.
During the court session, Raut gave a 15-minute speech in which he pleaded not guilty, talked about the world wars and the desire to be exchanged for political prisoners abroad. The judge interrupted his speech, calling these remarks irrelevant to the case.
Prehistory:
- The incident occurred on September 15, 2024, two months before the US presidential election. Secret Service agents spotted an armed man in the bushes a few hundred yards from where Trump was playing golf, and opened fire as the assailant attempted to flee in a vehicle.
- The investigation found that Raut arrived in South Florida a month before the incident, used six phones and assumed names to monitor Trump’s schedule. On the day of the attack, he hid in the bushes near the golf club for almost 10 hours with a semi-automatic rifle, armor plates and a video camera.
- This was the second assassination attempt on Trump during the 2024 election campaign. The first incident occurred in July in Pennsylvania, when a bullet grazed his ear during a rally.