1:28In this imaged released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement officers arrest Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, Sept. 15, 2024. Martin County Sheriff’s Office via AP, FILE
Federal prosecutors on Friday rested their case against Ryan Routh, the man accused of trying to kill Donald Trump on his Florida golf course last year.
Routh, who is representing himself despite not being an attorney, plans to call three witnesses on Monday for his defense case, including character witnesses and a firearms expert.
Prosecutors’ final witness on Friday was FBI Supervisory Special Agent Kimberly McGreevy, who used receipts to show that Routh spent the last month prior to the incident living in a gas station in the Palm Beach County area while conducting surveillance.
Prosecutors allege that Routh put together a methodical plan — including purchasing a military-grade weapon, researching Trump’s movements, and utilizing a dozen burner phones — to kill Trump based on political grievances.
Hiding in the bushes of Trump’s Palm Beach golf course and armed with a rifle, Routh allegedly came within a few hundred yards of the then-presidential nominee before a Secret Service agent spotted his rifle poking out of the tree line.
Routh allegedly fled the scene but was later arrested by a local sheriff’s office on a nearby interstate.
In this imaged released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement officers arrest Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, Sept. 15, 2024.Martin County Sheriff’s Office via AP, FILE
He faces five criminal charges, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, using a firearm in furtherance of a crime, assaulting a federal officer, possessing a firearm as a felon, and using a gun with a defaced serial number.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon — who previously oversaw and dismissed one of Trump’s criminal cases — has barred Routh from trying to argue that his alleged actions were justified, that he did not intend to carry out the assassination, or that his actions were protected by First Amendment rights.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com