Man convicted of trying to assassinate Trump at Florida golf course last year
Geoff: Ryan routh, the man charged with trying to kill then-presidential candidate Donald Trump at his Florida golf club last year was convicted on all 5 charges by jury this afternoon. The counts include attempted assassination, assaulting a federal officer and possession of a firearm. Routh could face life in prison when he is sentenced in December. Reacting to the verdict, president trump thanked the judge and jury and said routh was an evil man with an evil intention. And attorney general Pam Bondi said the prosecution illustrates the department of justice’s commitment to punishing those who engage in political violence. David Fischer has been covering the trial for the associated press and joins me now. Thanks for making time he never fired at president trump and was stopped before he could. So walk us through how this plot was disrupted and how that back shakes not only the charges but the jury’s verdict. >> He was camped out along the fence line of trump’s golf course there in west palm beach. The former president, future president was making his way going from the fifth hole to the six whole. The secret service was a whole ahead of him, as they were doing their sweep of the area, one of the secret service agents spotted Mr. Routh in the bushes. A conversation ensued. Mr. Routh ran away while the secret service agent part three or four times at him. Geoff: And as we understand it, you tried to stab himself as the verdict was read and he was quickly restrained. What do we know about that incident and how that behavior could affect his sentencing? >> The jury spent about two hours deliberating before they came back with a guilty verdict on all five counts. As the jurors were being escorted out of the courtroom, Mr. Routh began to make a stabbing motion at his neck. It didn’t like he punctured the skin, there’s no blood or anything, but Marshall’s moved forward, grabbed him and took him out. At that point, his daughter, who was also in the courtroom for the past two weeks, she began yelling, first at her father to not do anything, to not hurt himself, and then she started yelling at presumably the marshals or even the judge not to hurt him, not to do anything. She called the entire trial rigged and that it wasn’t fair and then he never hurt anyone, and eventually she was escorted out of the courtroom as well. Geoff: I think is worth noting that the trial featured an unusually lopsided presentation. H chose to represent himself. How did that self representation shape the way the trial unfolded and the evidence that the jury saw? >> The prosecutors called a total of 38 witnesses over seven days. Hours and hours of testimony there. Meanwhile, since Mr. Routh with representing himself, the cross examinations were relatively short compared to what an experienced attorney might do. And when it was time for Mr. Routh to present his case, he had about three witnesses, one witness was a firearms expert. Geoff: As we said, sentencing is set for December. Avid Fischer joining us from fort pierce, Florida outside that courtroom. Thanks again for your time. We appreciate it. ♪♪
Ryan Routh, the man charged with trying to kill Donald Trump at his Florida golf club last year, was convicted on five charges, including attempted assassination, assaulting a federal officer and possession of a firearm. Routh could face life in prison when he is sentenced in December. Geoff Bennett discussed the case with David Fischer of the Associated Press.
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