Ryan Wesley Routh, the individual charged with conspiring to take out former President Donald Trump at his Florida golf club earlier this month, appeared in court on Monday and formally pleaded not guilty to multiple charges, including the attempted assassination of a significant presidential contender.
Dressed in a brown prison jumpsuit and restrained by handcuffs, the 58-year-old Routh entered the courtroom with an air of composure. He took his seat alongside his two defense attorneys, engaging in quiet discussions as he prepared for the proceedings that ultimately lasted just five minutes.
Routh is looking at some serious time being bars, a daunting sentence of life imprisonment If if found guilty of the charges against him. Details regarding his next court appearance have yet to be disclosed.
As we previously reported, U.S. Secret Service agents encountered Routh on September 15 with a high-caliber rifle near the Trump International Golf Club. As the agents noticed the barrel of his firearm concealed within the shrubbery, they subsequently discharged their weapons toward him as he attempted to flee. Prosecutors have asserted that Routh’s intention was to assassinate the Republican nominee.
Although Routh did not fire any rounds during the incident, law enforcement officials recovered his weapon, which was loaded with 11 bullets.
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Furthermore, new information made public last week in court filings highlighted that several months prior, Routh had left a handwritten note with a friend asserting, “This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I failed you. I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster.” Following an investigation, authorities uncovered that he had been meticulously documenting Trump’s prior and scheduled public engagements and had been exploring routes to travel.
The FBI is still actively pursuing its investigation into the matter.
This the second time someone has tried to assassinate Donald Trump. As we previously reported, the first incident occurred in July during a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. At the time, a gunman opened fire on the former president, resulting in injuries to Trump and two others, while tragically claiming the life of one individual, Corey Comperatore. The shooter, identified as Thomas Crooks. He was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper in response to the gunfire.