ST. LUCIE COUNTY – U.S. Marshals rushed to stop Ryan Routh from stabbing himself with a pen after he learned he was convicted of trying to assassinate Donald Trump while the then-presidential candidate played a round of golf at his West Palm Beach course in 2024, reporters and observers inside the courtroom Sept. 23 said.
A federal jury found Routh guilty of all five charges brought against him regarding the Sept. 15, 2024, plot, including assaulting a federal officer, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime, possessing a firearm as a felon and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number, according to court records.
After Routh attempted to stab himself in the neck he was removed from the courtroom and brought back without evidence of injury, The Palm Beach Post reported. It took a jury of five men and seven women roughly 2 1/2 hours to decide on the guilty verdicts.
After the proceedings, before Routh was taken away from the courthouse, his children Adam and Sara Routh gathered to watch the procession of federal and local law enforcement vehicles transporting their father.
As a black Chevrolet sport utility vehicle passed, Sara Routh ran into the street toward the SUV yelling “Dad, I love you,” before being pulled away by a police officer.
What happens next to Routh?
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon ordered Routh to reappear in court Dec. 18 for sentencing.
Until then, he is in the St. Lucie County Jail, where on Sept. 24 he was in the medical dorm under suicide observation, St. Lucie Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Lt. Andrew Bolonka said. He said it’s to be determined how long he remains under observation.
Cannon will determine the sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors, according to a news release issued by the U.S. Department of Justice. It also said:
What happened in trial?
Throughout the 12-day trial, including jury selection, Routh spoke on his own behalf to jurors and questioned his three witnesses including acquaintances who characterized him as nonviolent and kind, The Post reported. He said he merely had a gun in the presence of Trump and had no capacity to shoot him.
Despite what prosecutors said were his steps taken to conceal his identity, obtain a weapon and load the weapon while hiding in bushes at Trump International Golf Club, Routh said it was only a form of protest.
Prosecutors, however, presented his own writings, search history, messages and loaded weapon as evidence his plot to assassinate the then-presidential candidate and former president was “deadly serious.”
Neither a plan to abandon or an inability to carry out a plot qualified as a defense for an assassination attempt, The Post reported prosecutors told jurors.
Can Routh Appeal the conviction?
Not being happy with the outcome is not a good enough reason to file an appeal. It must be based on identifiable errors in the trial, such as a legal error or misjudgment. Typical grounds for filing a federal appeal include improper admission of evidence, errors in jury instructions, wrongful conviction and excessive punishment, according to Daniel Izquierdo, a Miami defense attorney on izlegal.com.
In Florida federal court, a defendant typically has 14 days after the entry of judgment to file a notice of appeal, according to the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure. This deadline is from the date the judgment is entered, not the verdict date, and may be extended by the court for good cause for up to an additional 30 days. The judgment date is when the judge formally signs and enters the court’s final order.
A federal appellate court could issue a decision in a month or in a year or more. There’s no time limit.
(This story was updated with some new information.)
Corey Arwood is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Corey on (X) @coreyarwood, or reach him by phone at 772-978-2246.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Convicted on 5 federal charges, what happens next to Ryan Routh?
Reporting by Corey Arwood, Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
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