Ryan Routh pleads not guilty to charges he tried to assassinate Donald Trump at golf club
Ryan Routh pleaded not guilty Monday to charges he attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump by positioning himself with a rifle outside a golf club where the 2024 Republican presidential nominee was playing.
Routh, 58, also faces two gun-related charges after authorities said he pointed an SKS rifle through a fence at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 15. A Secret Service agent spotted the gun and shot at the suspect, chasing him off.
"Yes, your honor," Routh replied, when asked by U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart whether he understood the charges against him. Routh’s defense lawyer then formally entered the not-guilty plea.
Routh appeared at the hearing handcuffed and wearing a tan prison jumpsuit.
Routh is being held without bail.
Routh was arrested along a Florida highway in a black Nissan Xterra, which had license plates that didn't belong to the vehicle seen leaving the golf course. FBI agents found two additional license plates inside the vehicle, along with six cellphones, 12 pairs of gloves, a Hawaii driver’s license, a passport and a handwritten list of dates in August, September and October where the former president had been or was expected.
Prosecutors said Routh had been stalking the Trump golf course for a month. They found a note written months before his arrest that began "Dear World" in which he described his actions as "an assassination attempt."
“This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I failed you,” the letter said. “I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster. It is up to you now to finish the job; and I will offer $150,000 to whomever can complete the job.”
Lawyers for Routh suggested at a court hearing Sept. 23 that the letter may have been an attempt at gaining publicity and highlighted what they called his efforts to promote democracy in Ukraine and Taiwan.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Routh pleads not guilty to charges he tried to assassinate Trump