WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — A man who has already been jailed on federal charges for trying to assassinate then-presidential candidate Donald Trump for playing golf last fall, faces additional state terrorism and murder charges, the Florida Attorney General said Thursday.
Ryan Rouse attempts to undermine the country’s political system and attempts to accus the state of first-degree murder and terrorism, Attorney General James Usmier said.
“It’s not just an attack on one man when trying to seize the lives of a former president and a major presidential candidate. It was a political attack on Republican government and American values,” Usmeyer said.
Routh’s lead lawyer, Kristy Militello, did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
According to prosecutors, Rouse plotted to kill Trump as Trump played golf at his West Palm Beach golf course in September. Secret Service officials spotted Lous before Trump entered view. Routh aimed his rifle at his agent. The agent fired.
Republican Uthmeier criticized the Biden administration and accused his office of trying to “frustrate and block our efforts.” He praised FBI director Kash Patel and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi for their willingness to “work together in pursuit of justice.”
Routh is a felony who attempts to assassinate a presidential candidate, possesses a firearm promoting violent crime, assaults a federal officer, possesses firearms and ammunition, and is jailed on federal charges of possessing firearms with a monitored serial number.
He is scheduled for the court in the federal complaint in September. The delay between his arrest and the next court date was allowed to his lawyers to check hundreds of hours of footage from police body cameras and surveillance cameras and to peer in the material from Routh’s 17 mobile phones and other electronic devices.
Shortly after Routh’s arrest, Florida Gov. Ron Desantis said the state would conduct its own investigation and could lead to charges that were not available at the federal level.
If convicted of attempted assassination, Rous could be sentenced to life in prison.
