Man accused of trying to assassinate Trump in Florida rests his case without testifying

Ryan Routh declined to testify Monday while on trial for allegedly attempting to assassinate President Trump at his Florida golf club last year.

Routh — who is representing himself — rested his case after questioning three witnesses earlier Monday: a firearms expert and two character witnesses. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon asked if Routh wanted to testify himself, and he said no. Closing arguments are slated for Tuesday, and jurors will deliberate after that.

Routh has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal officer and several firearm violations. It was the second assassination attempt against Mr. Trump during last year’s campaign, following a shooting at a rally in Pennsylvania in July 2024 in which a bullet grazed Mr. Trump’s ear.

Prosecutors have said Routh spent weeks plotting to kill Trump before aiming a rifle through shrubbery as Mr. Trump played golf on September 2024, at his golf club in West Palm Beach. A Secret Service agent testified last week that he spotted Routh before the then-presidential candidate came into view. Routh aimed his rifle at the agent, who opened fire, causing Routh to drop his weapon and flee without firing a shot, the agent said.

Under questioning from Routh on Monday, firearms expert Michael McClay— a former Marine sniper and former Honolulu police officer — testified that Routh would have been able to have a view of the sixth green of the golf course, where he was allegedly hiding in the bushes. McClay testified that he had also tested Routh’s firearm for the trial, and a court permitted him to fire two shots as part of the test. However, McClay said that the second shot attempt jammed during the test, suggesting that Routh would have been unable to get off multiple shots.

McClay also testified that a scope found at the scene had been mounted to the firearm by tape and glue, which likely would have made it ineffective.

During cross-examination, federal prosecutors made the point that investigators would have used corrosive acid to retrieve the gun’s serial number, and nobody performed maintenance on the gun for months after that, so the metal may have rusted, causing it to operate less effectively.

The two character witnesses, a former employee and a friend of Routh’s son, testified that Routh was a peaceful man, but they conceded under cross examination that they hadn’t seen the suspect in years. Routh questioned his son’s friend for about 10 minutes, but the judge shut it down after Routh asked, “would you be willing to go to Taiwan with me and host a music festival?” Both character witnesses were cross-examined by prosecutors.

Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida rested their case Friday afternoon after spending seven days questioning 38 witnesses in an attempt to make sure Routh spends the rest of his life in prison.

Cannon signed off on Routh’s request to represent himself following two hearings in July. Routh told the judge that his court-appointed federal public defenders were diligent, but they didn’t listen to him and were afraid of him.

“How are they supposed to represent me and say I’m not a dangerous person when they don’t believe that?” Routh said in July.

The Supreme Court has held that criminal defendants have a right to represent themselves in court proceedings, as long as they can show a judge they are competent to waive their right to be defended by an attorney. Routh’s former defense attorneys have served as standby counsel since Routh took over his own defense and have been present during trial the past two weeks.

Cannon said attorneys should be prepared to deliver their closing arguments Tuesday, giving each side one hour and 45 minutes. Cannon had initially blocked off more than three weeks for the trial at the Fort Pierce federal courthouse, but Routh’s relatively short cross-examinations and defense presentation have led to a quicker pace than anticipated.

Routh was a North Carolina construction worker who in recent years had moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Routh spoke out to anyone who would listen about his dangerous, sometimes violent plans to insert himself into conflicts around the world, witnesses have told The Associated Press.

In the early days of the war in Ukraine, Routh tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to fight the Russians. In his native Greensboro, North Carolina, he was arrested in 2002 for eluding a traffic stop and barricading himself from officers with a fully automatic machine gun and a “weapon of mass destruction,” which turned out to be an explosive with a 10-inch (25-centimeter) fuse, police said.

In 2010, police searched a warehouse Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen items, from power tools and building supplies to kayaks and spa tubs. In both felony cases, judges gave Routh either probation or a suspended sentence.

In addition to the federal charges, Routh also has pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.

Two other people were accused of selling Routh the rifle he allegedly brought to Mr. Trump’s golf course, though both told law enforcement they did not have any advance knowledge of Routh’s alleged plans. 

One of those defendants has pleaded guilty to firearm trafficking, and the other pleaded guilty to possessing an unregistered firearm after police found a short-barreled shotgun in his storage building.