FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) — The ju umpire choice is scheduled to begin Monday in the trial of a man who tried to assassinate Donald Trump while playing golf in South Florida last year.
The court cut off four weeks for Ryan Rouse’s trial, but lawyers expect it to be short on time.
The selection of a ju umpire is expected to take three days, and lawyers have questioned three sets of 60 ju umpires. They are trying to find 12 ju umpires and 4 alternatives. The opening statement is scheduled to begin Thursday, and prosecutors will begin lawsuits soon thereafter.
US District Judge Eileen Cannon approved it in July with a request to represent herself, but said court-designated lawyers should remain as standby lawyers. At last week’s hearing, Cannon confirmed that Routh was wearing professional business clothes for the trial. She also explained to Routh that she would be allowed to use the podium while talking to the ju-degree and questioning witnesses, but there was no free reins for the court.
The trial begins almost a year after prosecutors say that US Secret Service agents have hampered Routh’s attempts to film a Republican presidential candidate. 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.
Just nine weeks ago, Trump had survived another attempt in his life during his campaign in Pennsylvania. The gunman fired eight rounds with one bullet grazing Trump’s ears before being shot by a Secret Service counter sniper.
Prosecutors said Trump was nervous for weeks to kill him when he played golf at his West Palm Beach Country Club on September 15, 2024, before attempting a planting. Before Trump enters his sights, Secret Service agents discover Routh. Officials say Rous targeted his rifle at the agent and he opened the fire, causing Rous to drop his weapon and let him escape without firing a shot.
Law enforcement received help from witnesses who said prosecutors saw the person who notified officers escaped. The witnesses were then flew by police helicopter to the interstate nearby where Lous was arrested, and the witnesses confirmed that it was the person he saw, prosecutors said.
Last week, the judge sealed off a 33-page list of prosecutors who could be featured as evidence at trial. Prosecutors say he has a photo of Routh holding the same model of the semi-automatic rifle found at Trump’s club.
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 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 a barricade by officers with fully 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 charges, Rous also pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.
