FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) — A man who represents himself in federal court for allegedly attempting to assassinate Donald Trump last year on a Florida golf course will present his closing argument on Tuesday, but the judge has already warned that if he fails to follow the rules, he can cut his presentation short.
Ryan Rouse and the prosecutor have an hour and 45 minutes to file a final lawsuit with the ju apprentice before deliberations begin.
Prosecutors said Trump spent weeks trying to kill Republican Trump before targeting his rifle through the planting garden when he played golf at his West Palm Beach Country Club on September 15, 2024.
Routh, 59, admits that he has not committed any crimes in attempting to assassinate a presidential candidate and assaulting several firearm violations with federal officers.
During the final minutes of Monday’s courtroom, U.S. District Judge Eileen Cannon reminded Routh that the closing argument must be linked to evidence and testimony presented during the trial. She warned him that failing to follow these restrictions could lead to him losing time for his final discussion.
Routh exercised his constitutional rights to not testify in his own defense, and Cannon said that Routh could not use his final argument as an opportunity to testify without the possibility of a cross-test.
“This cannot be an opportunity to provide pseudo-recall outside the context of the testimony of the oath,” Cannon said.
Routh said he understood, but he also claimed he understood nearly two weeks ago when Cannon gave similar instructions to his opening statement. Cannon cut him off less than 10 minutes later, explaining that he ignored her warning and confiscated his right to continue when he left the topic to talk about the war with Adolf Hitler in Ukraine and Gaza.
Routh took his case to rest Monday morning after asking only three witnesses, a firearms expert and two character witnesses for about three hours in total. In contrast, prosecutors spent seven days questioning 38 witnesses.
Cannon signed off in response to Routh’s request to represent himself following two hearings in July. The U.S. Supreme Court held that a criminal defendant has the right to represent himself in court cases as long as he can demonstrate that the judge has the capacity to waive his right to be protected by his lawyer. Routh’s former defense attorney has served as a standby counsel ever since Routh took over his own defense and attended during the trial over the past two weeks.
Referring to what happened on the golf course, Secret Service agents testified earlier in the trial that he found Louth before Trump entered view. Routh aimed his rifle at his agent. The agent fired, and Routh dropped his weapon and ran away without firing a shot, the agent said.
Law enforcement received help from witnesses who testified that they saw someone fleeing the area after hearing gunshots. The witnesses later said they were flying on a police helicopter to the nearby interstate where Lous was arrested, and the witnesses confirmed that it was the person he saw.
Just nine weeks ago, Trump had survived his life’s attempts during a campaign in Butler, Pennsylvania. The gunman fired eight shots with one bullet grazing Trump’s ears. The gunman was later fatally shot by a Secret Service counter sniper.
Routh is a North Carolina construction worker and has recently moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Rous spoke to people who listened to dangerous and sometimes violent plans to insert themselves into conflicts around the world, an eyewitness told The Associated Press.
Early in the Russian war in Ukraine, Rous tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to fight the Russians. In his hometown of Greensboro, North Carolina, he avoided traffic stops in 2002 and was arrested for barricades by officers with completely automatic machine guns and “weapons of mass destruction.”
In 2010, police searched Routh, a warehouse owned by the company, finding over 100 stolen items, ranging from power tools and buildings to kayaks and spa tubs. For both felony cases, the judge told him either probation or suspended sentences.
In addition to federal accusations, Routh also pleaded not guilty to state accusations against terrorism and attempted murder.
