Ryan Routh Pleads Not Guilty to Charges of Attempted Assassination of Donald Trump at Golf Club
Ryan Routh, 58, pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges of attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump. The alleged incident occurred on September 15, 2024, at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, where Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential nominee, was playing.
Routh faces additional charges related to firearms after authorities stated he aimed an SKS rifle through a fence at the golf course. A Secret Service agent noticed the weapon and fired at Routh, prompting him to flee the scene. Routh was later apprehended during a traffic stop near Palm City, Florida. His vehicle, a black Nissan Xterra, had mismatched license plates, and inside, investigators found two more plates, six cellphones, gloves, a Hawaii driver’s license, a passport, and a handwritten list of dates where Trump had been or was expected.Ryan Routh Pleads Not Guilty to Charges of Attempted Assassination of Donald Trump at Golf Club
Prosecutors claim Routh had been monitoring Trump’s golf course for about a month and had penned a note months earlier titled “Dear World,” detailing his actions as an “assassination attempt.”
At the hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart asked Routh if he understood the charges, to which Routh replied, “Yes, your honor.” His defense lawyer entered the not-guilty plea, and Routh is being held without bail.