Ryan Routh, the gunman who barricaded himself in a sniper’s perch with an assault rifle at one of Donald Trump’s golf courses, was found guilty Tuesday of trying to assassinate the then-Republican nominee. Routh, 59, was arrested last year in Palm Beach, Florida, after an hours-long manhunt.
Secret Service agents had spotted him hiding in the bushes near one of Trump’s golf courses while the former president was out playing before he fled the scene. It took the jury only about two hours to convict Routh, 59, on five federal charges, including attempted assassination, assaulting a federal officer, and multiple gun offenses, following a two-week trial in Fort Pierce, Florida.
Found Guilty after Failed Plot
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Routh now faces up to life in prison. Routh, who has no formal legal training, chose to represent himself in court, delivering a bizarre and amateurish defense. At one point, he even suggested the case should be decided by a “golf match to the death” against Trump—claiming that if Trump won, he could execute Routh, but if Routh won, he would become president.
His outlandish antics repeatedly drew the judge’s ire for breaking court rules. Prosecutors detailed how Routh had planned the attack for weeks before staking out the Trump International West Palm Beach golf course on September 15, 2024, while Trump was playing golf.
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A Secret Service agent spotted him perched in a sniper’s nest with an SKS rifle aimed through a fence. The agent fired, and Routh fled without ever discharging his weapon.
This incident was the second assassination attempt on Trump in just nine weeks.
Earlier, on July 13, 20-year-old Michael Thomas Crooks fired several rounds at Trump while he campaigned in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing the former president’s ear. Crooks was shot dead by a Secret Service counter-sniper.
Amateurish Defense
Judge Aileen Cannon—a Trump appointee—cut him off after less than 10 minutes due to his rambling remarks, which veered from prehistoric human history to world leaders like Hitler, Vladimir Putin, and Benjamin Netanyahu.
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At one point, Routh told the jury, “This case means absolutely nothing. A life has been lived to the fullest.”
During jury selection, he also tried to ask potential jurors about everything from the U.S. taking over Greenland to pro-Palestinian student activism—and even how they would react if a turtle crossed the road while driving. Judge Cannon quickly shut down the questions, calling them “irrelevant.”
Routh, who had been living in Hawaii in recent years, fired his lawyers earlier this summer and was allowed by Cannon to represent himself. The judge warned him, however, that his former attorneys would have done a far better job, and that he could only consult with standby lawyers on technical legal matters—not on overall defense strategy.
Once in charge of his defense, Routh filed a series of outlandish legal documents, including a witness list that named Trump, activist Mahmoud Khalil, and a Secret Service agent whom Routh claimed had asked him to “spank/slap ass.” Most of the 24 witnesses he proposed were blocked from testifying, as Judge Cannon ruled they couldn’t provide relevant testimony.
During the trial, prosecutors called 38 law enforcement witnesses, including the Secret Service agent who foiled his plot. In contrast, Routh called only three: two character witnesses and a single gun expert. He pleaded not guilty to all charges but chose not to take the stand himself.
In previous court filings, Routh made a string of bizarre requests, questioning why his case didn’t qualify for the death penalty and even asking to be exchanged in a prisoner swap with Hamas, Iran and Russia.
