Court system

Routh Trial Opens in Alleged Trump Assassination Attempt

Published SEP 12 2025

Story

Above: Ryan Routh at a rally in Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 27, 2022. Image credit: Nicolas Garcia/AFPTV/AFP/Getty Images

The Facts

Ryan Routh, 59, went on trial Thursday for attempting to assassinate then-presidential candidate Donald Trump on Sept.15, 2024, at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. He faces five federal charges, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate.
FOX News
Al Jazeera
The Justice Department
Prosecutors allege Routh — who has pleaded not guilty — methodically planned the assassination for weeks, traveling from Hawaii with stolen license plates, multiple cell phones and camping at a truck stop for about a month while tracking Trump's movements and visiting the golf course 17 times.
CBC
FOX News
Secret Service agent Robert Fercano testified that he spotted Routh hiding in bushes near the sixth hole with an AK-47 style rifle pointed directly at his face, prompting Fercano to fire shots that caused Routh to flee without firing his weapon.
WPBF Channel 25
ABC News
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon cut off Routh's opening statement after roughly three minutes, when he shifted to topics including human evolution and global conflicts, and declared, "This case means absolutely nothing." On cross-examination, Routh asked only a few questions of witnesses, among them whether the pointed gun had harmed Agent Robert Fercano.
New York Post
NBC
The Associated Press
FBI agents allegedly recovered an SKS semiautomatic rifle with obliterated serial numbers, body armor plates and a handwritten letter from Routh, addressed to "Dear World," stating, "This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump, but I am so sorry I failed you."
The Justice Department
USA Today
Newsmax
A jury of seven women and five men was selected from a pool of 180 potential jurors. Routh represented himself after dismissing his court-appointed attorneys, who remained as standby counsel to assist with procedural matters. Witness testimony for the trial is set to resume on Friday.
Newsweek
FOX News
Daily Caller

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

Routh's erratic courtroom behavior and rambling opening statement prove he's mentally unfit to mount any coherent defense. His strange references to Hitler, Ukraine, Henry Ford and the Wright brothers, mixed with musings on the evolution of humankind, show a defendant completely detached from reality. The judge was absolutely right to cut him off — this isn't a platform for irrelevant theatrics.

The New York Times

Narrative B

The decision to represent himself reflects a principled stand against a system that would assign "random strangers" to speak for someone facing life in prison. Routh's attempt to focus on intent and his peaceful nature show that he understands what really matters in this case. The prosecution wants to silence his voice and prevent the jury from hearing his side of the story.

Reuters

Cynical narrative

Does anyone really care about another political circus trial? Ryan Routh allegedly spent weeks plotting to shoot Trump at his Florida golf course, only to drop his rifle and flee without firing a shot. Now he's representing himself, making bizarre requests for strippers, a putting green and even a fistfight or golf match with Trump. Yet with so many real crises, this whole spectacle feels like empty theater meant to distract.

USA Today