LIFE SENTENCE FOR TRUMP'S ASSASSINATION PLOTTER ; MAKES BIZZARE PUTIN AND HITLER COMMENTS

Ryan Wesley Routh, the man who attempted to assassinate then–presidential candidate Donald Trump on a Florida golf course during the tense 2024 campaign season, has been sentenced to life in federal prison, closing one of the most disturbing political violence cases in recent U.S. history.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, delivering the sentence in Fort Pierce, Florida, said the severity, planning and intent behind the attack left the court with no alternative but to impose the harshest possible penalty. In her sentencing remarks, the judge pointed to months of preparation, the clear willingness to kill, and Routh’s continued lack of remorse.

“This was a premeditated, calculated plot to take a human life,” Judge Cannon said, adding that the crimes “undeniably warrant a life sentence.”

Routh, 59, was convicted by a federal jury in September 2025 on all five counts in the indictment, including the attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, assault of a federal law enforcement officer and multiple firearms offences. He was sentenced to life in prison plus an additional 84 months.

The attack unfolded on September 15, 2024, at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, while Trump was playing golf, just weeks before the presidential election.
According to court testimony, U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Robert Fercano, who was patrolling one hole ahead of Trump, spotted what appeared to be a rifle barrel protruding through a fence line bordering the course. The weapon was aimed from a concealed sniper’s position hidden in dense shrubbery.

Fearing an imminent threat to both himself and the former president, the agent fired at the suspect. Routh fled immediately, abandoning his position before he could fire a shot.

Law enforcement officers later recovered a Norinco SKS semi-automatic rifle fitted with a scope, a loaded magazine with 19 rounds of ammunition and one round chambered, steel body armour plates, and a camera mounted to the fence and trained on the sixth green — the exact area Trump was expected to reach moments later.

A civilian witness reported seeing Routh sprint across a nearby roadway and drive away in a black Nissan Xterra. He was arrested shortly afterwards on Interstate 95 by Martin County sheriff’s deputies, with assistance from Palm Beach County officers.

Federal investigators revealed that Routh had been in South Florida for weeks before the attack, living at a truck stop and repeatedly tracking Trump’s movements. Cell phone records showed his device connected to towers near Trump International Golf Club and Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence multiple times between August 18 and September 15, 2024.

Evidence also showed that months earlier, Routh had left a box at an acquaintance’s home containing a handwritten letter addressed “Dear World.” In it, he wrote: “This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I am so sorry I failed you.”

Prosecutors described the case as a “mountain of evidence” demonstrating how close the country came to another national tragedy.
“This was not just an attack on President Trump,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement. “It was a direct assault on our democratic system.”

FBI Director Kash Patel echoed that sentiment, calling the plot “a despicable attack on American democracy” and praising the coordinated response that prevented loss of life.

Routh, a native of North Carolina who later lived in Hawaii, had a lengthy criminal record dating back decades, including felony weapons convictions that legally barred him from possessing firearms.
Once hailed locally in the early 1990s for assisting police in the arrest of a suspected rapist, Routh’s later life was marked by repeated encounters with law enforcement, financial troubles and increasingly erratic behaviour.

During his trial, which he largely conducted representing himself, Routh made bizarre statements referencing global conflicts, Adolf Hitler, Vladimir Putin and even challenged Trump to a game of golf. At one point after his conviction, he attempted to stab himself in the neck with a pen before being restrained by U.S. marshals.

Despite later claiming he did not intend to kill Trump and expressing willingness to undergo psychological treatment, prosecutors argued — and the jury agreed — that his actions clearly demonstrated lethal intent.

The Florida incident was the second attempt on Trump’s life in 2024. Two months earlier, in July, a gunman opened fire at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, killing one attendee and injuring several others, including Trump, who was grazed by a bullet. The attacker was shot dead at the scene.

Together, the two incidents raised urgent questions about political extremism, campaign security and the rising threat of violence in U.S. elections.
Assistant Attorney General John Eisenberg said Routh’s sentence sends a clear message that political violence will not be tolerated.
“We resolve our differences through democratic elections and lawful protest — not by force,” he said.

Routh’s lawyer has confirmed that an appeal will be filed, though legal experts say the scale of evidence and the jury’s unanimous verdict leave little room for reversal.