The criminal trial of the man accused of trying to assassinate U.S. President Donald Trump at his Florida golf course begins with opening statements on Thursday, with defendant Ryan Routh representing himself in a proceeding set to showcase the increasing prominence of political violence in the U.S.
Routh, 59, has pleaded not guilty to five federal charges, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
In July, Routh told the court that he did not trust a “random stranger” to speak for him and would defend himself. His two former public defenders are now serving as standby lawyers to assist with logistical issues.
On Monday, according to an Associated Press report, he told prospective jurors he was “sorry for bringing you all in here.”
U.S. prosecutors allege Routh hid with a rifle near the sixth-hole green at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach intending to kill Trump as he golfed on the course on Sept. 15, 2024.
A Secret Service agent spotted Routh and the rifle poking through a fence and opened fire, prompting Routh to flee without firing a shot, according to court documents. He was arrested the same afternoon after being stopped by police on a Florida highway.
The Routh arrest occurred just two months after a shooter targeted Trump, who suffered damage to his ear, at a Pennsylvania presidential campaign rally. That gunman, Thomas Crooks, was shot dead at the scene.
Judge once presided over Trump criminal case
Routh, who had lived an erratic life as a struggling roofing contractor, had advocated for democracy in Taiwan and Ukraine, and was interviewed in 2023 about a quixotic plan to deploy Afghan refugees to help Ukraine repel Russia’s invasion.
The trial is set to start the day after right-wing activist and influential Trump ally Charlie Kirk was shot and killed during an event at Utah Valley University, marking the latest instance of political violence in the U.S.
A jury of seven women and five men will begin hearing evidence in the case following opening statements.
The trial begins as Trump puts his stamp on the U.S. Justice Department, which is prosecuting the case, firing officials deemed insufficiently loyal.
Law enforcement officials work outside of the Trump International Golf Club after the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, then a presidential candidate, on Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (Lynne Sladky/The Associated Press)
In a twist of fate, it will be held at the same courthouse and in front of the same judge where Trump faced criminal charges accusing him of illegally holding onto classified documents following his first term. Judge Aileen Cannon, whom Trump nominated in 2020, dismissed that case before it reached a trial.
Cannon showed flashes of frustration with Routh during three days of jury selection and rejected his proposed questions to prospective jurors, which touched on topics including pro-Palestinian student activism and the war in Ukraine, which she called irrelevant.
