•Ryan Wesley Routh (C) following his arrest in Martin County, Florida, on September 15
A man charged with attempting to assassinate Donald Trump at his Florida golf course last year was convicted by a federal jury on all counts yesterday.
Ryan Routh, 59, of Hawaii, appeared to try to stab himself in the neck with a pen after the guilty verdict was read in court, and court marshals had to restrain him, Fox News and NBC reported.
Routh was convicted of attempted assassination of a presidential candidate, assaulting a federal officer and firearms offenses after a 12-day trial.
He faces a possible sentence of life in prison for attempting to kill Trump, who was then running for election to a second presidential term. Sentencing was set for December 18.
Trump congratulated Attorney General Pam Bondi and Justice Department prosecutors for securing the conviction.
“This was an evil man with an evil intention, and they caught him,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Bondi said the guilty verdict “illustrates the Department of Justice’s commitment to punishing those who engage in political violence.”
“This attempted assassination was not only an attack on our president, but an affront to our very nation itself,” Bondi said in a statement.
Routh was arrested on September 15, 2024 after a Secret Service agent saw the barrel of a rifle poking from bushes on the perimeter of the West Palm Beach golf course where Trump was playing a round.
The agent opened fire and Routh, who fled in a vehicle, was arrested shortly after.
The incident followed an assassination attempt on Trump on July 13, 2024 in which Thomas Matthew Crooks fired several shots during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. One of them grazed Trump’s right ear.
Crooks was shot dead by a Secret Service sniper.
Routh represented himself during his trial in Fort Pierce, Florida. He made rambling statements which tried the patience of District Judge Aileen Cannon, who cut short his opening statement.
Routh has a fixation with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and reportedly travelled to Kyiv in an effort to join foreign volunteer units before being rejected due to his age and lack of experience.
