Ryan Routh | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Routh's mug shot after his arrest in 2024 | |
| Born | Ryan Wesley Routh (1966-02-18)February 18, 1966 (age 59) |
| Education | UNC Greensboro (dropped out) North Carolina A&T State University (dropped out) |
| Known for | Attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Florida |
| Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) |
| Political party | Independent (since 2002) Democratic (1988–2002)[6] |
| Spouse | [2] |
| Partner | Kathleen Elizabeth Shaffer (2017–2024)[3][4] |
| Children | 3[7] |
| Parent(s) | Daniel Wesley Routh (father) Marjorie Patton Fearing (mother)[5] |
| Motive | Prevent Trump from winning the2024 presidential election |
| Convictions | 5 counts[a] |
| Criminal charge | 3 counts[b] |
| Penalty | Federal: Life in prison without the possibility ofparole plus 7 years to run consecutively |
| Details | |
| Date | September 15, 2024 |
| Location | Trump International Golf Club, West Palm Beach |
| Weapon | SKS semiautomatic 7.62x39 caliber rifle |
| Imprisoned at | Federal Detention Center, Miami (currently awaiting designation by theFBOP)[1] |
| Signature | |
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Ryan Wesley Routh[c] (born February 18, 1966) is an American formerroofer and activist whoattempted to assassinate then-former U.S. presidentDonald Trump at hisgolf course during his2024 presidential campaign. Routh was motivated to assassinate Trump to prevent him from being elected.[9] The incident occurred two months after Trump surviveda previous assassination attempt while speaking at a campaign rally nearButler, Pennsylvania.[10][4][11]
On September 15, 2024 at 1:59 a.m.EDT, Routh hid in shrubbery holding anSKS-style rifle just outside the fence of the golf course.[12] At 1:31 p.m., after hiding there for nearly twelve hours, Routh pointed his weapon through the fence line, approximately 400 yards away from Trump. ASecret Service agent noticed this and fired four rounds towards Routh, who then fled the scene and was later captured inMartin County.[13]
Routh was indicted on a total of five federal charges, including attempting to assassinate a presidential candidate. Routh was later additionally indicted on three state charges including attemptedfelony murder.[14] Routh pleaded not guilty to all the charges. Two conspirators who helped Routh obtain the rifle were also later arrested and charged.[15][16][17] In July 2025, Routh chose to fire his public defenders andrepresent himself. His trial began on September 8, 2025.[18] Two weeks later, on September 23, he was found guilty on all five federal counts.[19] While the verdict was being read in the courtroom, Routh grabbed a pen and attempted to stab himself in the neck, before being tackled by U.S. marshals.[20] On February 4, 2026, he was sentenced tolife in prison without the possibility ofparole.[21][22]
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Ryan Wesley Routh was born on February 18, 1966,[23] inGuilford County, North Carolina. Routh was a resident ofGreensboro for most of his life.[2] He had a sister named Nancy Meyers (née Routh).[24] He attendedGuilford Junior High School (now called Guilford Middle School) in the late 1970's.[25] He was given anEagle Scout award in 1980.[26][27][28][29] After middle school, he enteredNorthwest Guilford High School where he graduated in 1984.[25] However, on Facebook, Routh claimed to have graduated fromGrimsley High School.[30] A former classmate of his said that Routh was social and had friends at school, but he was not popular.[31] He began attending theUniversity of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1988, however he dropped out in 1990.[32] In 1995, Routh attendedNorth Carolina A&T State University for two semesters, however he dropped out later that year before finishing any degree program.[33]
In January 1989, Routh married Lora Frances Wilson,[2][34] and they had two sons and a daughter.[35][36][37][38][39] Routh's former Greensboro neighbors saw Routh and his family as "weird" and "potentially dangerous."[40][41] In the early 1990's, Routh opened a roofing business calledUnited Roofing, with a total of 90 employees.[42] He abandoned the business in the early 2000's, and was last seen there to dump trash in May 2024.[31] Routh filed a divorce against Lora on January 22, 2003, which was granted two months later on March 10.[43] Civil court records show Routh's daughter and youngest son, Sara Ellen Routh and Adam A. Routh, lived with him full time after the divorce, while his eldest son, Oran Alexander Routh, lived with Lora full time.[44] Routh tried to get a skate park built near Greensboro in the mid 2000's.[26]
On April 2, 1991, Routh fought and chased 28-year-old Terrance Bryant (born October 28, 1962), a suspected rapist, around an office building. Bryant was also wanted for a string of burglaries, assaults and robberies in both Greensboro and out-of-state inNew York. He was taken into custody later that evening and was sentenced the following year to life inprison in May 1992.[45] For confronting the suspect, Routh was honored as a "super citizen" and awarded a "Law Enforcement Oscar" a few months after the chase by the Greensboro chapter of theInternational Union of Police Associations.[46]
In 2018, Routh moved toKaʻaʻawa, Hawaii with his fiancé, Kathleen Elizabeth Shaffer, and his daughter and youngest son. There, they started a shed-building business calledCamp Box Honolulu.[39] Routh and his eldest son, Oran, had had a falling out and had not talked prior to the assassination attempt, although following the attempt he said that Routh was "a loving and caring father, and honest, hardworking man" and that "it doesn't sound like the man I know to do anything crazy, much less violent."[47]
Routh had a lengthy criminal record prior to the assassination attempt, ranging from 1984 to 2016. During that timeframe, Routh had been convicted of over a hundred criminal counts of various crimes, and had been arrested at least eight times. Routh typically received parole or probation for all these offenses, with no record of time that he was in prison.[48][49][50] He roughly had one hundred encounters with local law enforcement, according to a retired Greensboro police officer who Routh knew by name.[51] Routh once told the officer that he believed Greensboro was unjustly coming after him.[32] Throughout his career, Routh had been ordered to pay tens of thousands of dollars to plaintiffs related to more than 200 civil lawsuits.[52][53]
In 1984, Routh was charged for failing to report an accident.[54] Throughout the 1990's, he was charged multiple times for tax delinquencies and writing bad checks.[44] In 1997, Routh was charged withlarceny after he was caught stealing valuable items with the intent to keep them.[55]
On December 15, 2002, Routh, at the age of 36, was pulled over for driving with a revoked license, as his license was revoked in November 2001 following an incident related to a motor vehicle violation.[51] He then put his hand on a fully-automatic machine gun he had with him, alarming the officer,[56] before driving to his place of business, where he barricaded himself inside. After a three-hour stand off with police, Routh surrendered the following day and was convicted for possessing a weapon of mass death and destruction, possessing a firearm, resisting and delaying and obstructing a law enforcement officer, and driving with a license revoked.[39][57][58] Routh pleaded guilty to all of the charges,[52] and was sentenced to sixty months' probation where his weapons were seized and destroyed by the Greensboro Police Department as part of a plea deal. Routh additionally agreed to undergo a mental health evaluation and accept recommended treatments. Shortly after, he was arrested again for threatening to blow up the aforementioned police department.[59][60] After the assassination attempt, the officer who initially pulled over Routh was interviewed, where she stated; "I figured he was either dead or in prison by now. I had no clue that he had moved on and was continuing his escapades."[56]
In 2003, he was convicted for driving without a license, carrying a concealed weapon and being involved in ahit and run. On February 10, 2010, Routh was convicted of several counts of possessing stolen goods after Greensboro police searched through three warehouses Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen tools and building materials from sites where he worked as a roofer, including kayaks, welding torches, power cords, and spa tubs.[54][61][62] For this, he was sentenced to probation, which concluded in July 2012. In 2014, Routh was arrested for failing to appear in court.[55]
In 2019, Routh was subject to a closed investigation over a tip to the FBI alleging that he was a felon in possession of a firearm. Later that same year, he was removed from a property for allegedlysquatting. In 2021, Routh called the police on a resident of a property that he was working at, claiming he punched him in the nose.[63]
Routh claimed on his social media accounts, as well as in 2022 interviews withThe New York Times,Newsweek Romania, andDer Tagesspiegel to have made efforts torecruit foreign soldiers forUkraine in its war against Russia.[57][64][65]Newsweek reported Routh had claimed to have fought in Ukraine,[57] while he toldThe New York Times he did not fight in Ukraine.[66] Routh said in a 2022 interview with a Romanian reporter inKyiv that he flew to Ukraine to join the army in the months after Russia's full-scale invasion, but learned that he was "not an ideal candidate" for the battlefield because he was in his mid-50s with no military experience. Later in 2022, Routh said in an interview that after he was rejected for military service, he began recruiting volunteer soldiers for the Ukrainian military.[67] Routh complained of roadblocks to Ukraine admitting foreign fighters, telling the publicationSemafor that "Ukraine is very often hard to work with, they're afraid that anybody and everybody is a Russian spy".[43][68] Routh was filmed at an April 2022 protest inIndependence Square in Kyiv.[69] Routh was reported in 2022 and 2023 to have been associated with the International Volunteer Center, aLviv-based non-profit providing assistance to foreign fighters in Ukraine. In 2024, after the assassination attempt, the group's founder, Ian Netupsky, said that Routh had never been affiliated with the organization.[70][71][72]
A former volunteer forUkraine's International Legion, Evelyn Aschenbrenner, branded Routh as "delusional" and a "liar" over his claims that he recruited for the Ukrainian organization, saying Routh was "not, and never has been, associated with the International Legion or the Ukrainian Armed Forces at all". Aschenbrenner said of Routh, "He was combative. He was argumentative. He refused repeatedly to understand basic army policy", further adding, "There wasdelusions of grandeur and [he was] very disconnected from reality." The International Legion for the Defense of Ukraine said in a statement that Routh had "never been part of, associated with, or linked" to it "in any capacity".[73][74][75]
Chelsea Walsh, a travel nurse who had met Routh in Ukraine, viewed Routh as "a threat to others" and a "ticking time bomb", and warned a Homeland Security agent upon her return from Ukraine. She claimed that Routh decided to dedicate his life to protecting Ukraine upon first hearing about the war in 2022, and that he would become "vengeful" and "angry" if he did not get his way. Sometime in 2023, Walsh ultimately reported Routh to the FBI for his behavior.[76] Routh had also claimed to her to have organized a protest outside PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy's home and was jailed for it, although this was not confirmed.[77] Walsh repeated her concerns to both the FBI and Interpol. In November 2023, Routh arrived back in Hawaii.[78]
On September 12, 2024, merely three days before the assassination attempt, Routh exchanged messages with British-trained commandos fromAfghanistan about recruitment to the Russo-Ukrainian War over the instant messaging appWhatsApp.[79]
On September 15, 2024,Trump was golfing atTrump International Golf Club inWest Palm Beach with his friend and donorSteve Witkoff.[80] Trump was walking along the fifth hole when Robert Fercano, aSecret Service agent, conducted a sweep of the sixth hole ahead of him for any threats. During the sweep, Routh was seen aiming a rifle at Fercano while hiding in shrubs approximately 400 yards (370 m) away.[81] The position in which Routh had been is well-known as a spot frequently used bypaparazzi to photograph Trump at his golf course.[82] At 1:31 p.m.EDT[83] (approximately 12 hours after Routh's 1:59 a.m. arrival),[84][85] Fercano, having seen the rifle barrel move,[86] fired four rounds towards Routh, who then dropped his weapon and fled in a vehicle.[87] After the shot was fired, Trump was escorted off the course by his Secret Serviceprotective detail.[85] Routh did not have a clear line of sight on Trump and did not fire his gun.[81][88] Tommy Craig McGee, a witness who was driving to a nearby furniture store at the time of the incident, saw him running out of the woods and into a black car. He quickly took three photos and a video of Routh's vehicle, assisting authorities in tracking it down.[89] The golf course was locked down shortly after the incident,[90] and no injuries were reported.[91][92]
After Routh fled the scene, a "be on the lookout" was issued to law enforcement with details about the suspect's car, a blackNissan Xterra SUV. At 2:22 p.m, after pulling over the vehicle onInterstate 95 inMartin County, Martin County Sheriff's Office deputies Nicholas Shaw and Gedeon Brenovil forced Routh out of the car and arrested him at gunpoint.[93][94] According to thePalm Beach County Sheriff's Office, Routh was detained as aperson of interest while he was driving northbound on Interstate 95 fromPalm Beach County.[95] The sheriff's units "waited [for] a while" to stop the vehicle to avoid engaging in a high-speed chase. Seventeen burnercell-phones were found inside Routh's vehicle.[96] AnSKS-style rifle with a removed serial number, ascope, two backpacks containing ceramic tiles that could deflect a bullet, a plastic bag containing food, and aGoPro camera, were recovered at the scene.[81][85][97] Routh was unarmed at the time of his arrest.[98]
Lazaro and Samuel Plata, two brothers who were former employees of Routh,[99] contacted law enforcement on September 18, stating that Routh had dropped off a box containing a 12-page letter at their house in April 2024, several months before the incident. The two opened the box after the incident.[12] Improvised destructive device components, burner cellphones, and .50 caliber ammunition was recovered from the box. On September 23, 2024, theDepartment of Justice publicized the first page of the letter; it stated:[12][100][101]
Dear World, this was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I am so sorry I failed you. 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. Everyone across the globe from the youngest to the oldest know that Trump is unfit to be anything, much less a U.S president. U.S presidents must at bare minimum embody the moral fabric that is America and be kind, caring and selfless and always stand for humanity. Trump fails to understand any of-
According to authorities, the letter indicated that Routh had planned the assassination attempt as early as February 2024, and simultaneously acknowledged months in advance that he might fail.[102]
On the day of his arraignment, he was seen smiling and laughing with his lawyer.[103] Footage of his arrest was also released to the public.[104]
Kristy R. Militello and Renee Michelle Sihvola were assigned as Routh's defense attorneys. Routh was charged on September 24 with attempted assassination of a presidential candidate, as well as assaulting a federal officer and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.[105]
On December 18, it was discovered that the traffic closure caused during Routh's initial arrest led to a car crash that injured Mia Rosalie Monreal, a 6-year-old girl ofSt. Lucie Village, Florida who was going on a car ride with her family.[3] Monreal fractured her arm and received severe brain damage, and was left in a coma for approximately one month.[106] Monreal's mother toldWPTV-TV; "She can’t communicate so even when I talk to her, I don’t even know if she remembers me."[107] As a result of the incident, Routh was additionally charged with attemptedfelony murder.[108]
On April 7, 2025, Florida state prosecutors indicted Routh for discussing the idea with someone he believed to be a Ukrainian about using a rocket launcher to shoot down Trump's plane. Florida Attorney GeneralJames Uthmeier charged Routh with attempted first-degree murder and terrorism.[14]
As part of investigations following the assassination attempt, authorities searched the Greensboro home of Ryan Routh's oldest son, 35-year-old Oran Alexander Routh (born May 21, 1989), who was previously arrested twice in 2016 for assault and interfering with police.[47] They discoveredimages of child sex abuse on his electronic devices, leading to his arrest.[35][109] Oran pled guilty to one count of possessing child pornography involving a minor who had not yet reached 12 years of age. He then had an outburst in the court, claiming his arrest on the charges were motivated by "political persecution."[109] On July 25, 2025, the judge subsequently sentenced Oran to seven years in federal prison with five years of supervised probation.[110]
On September 23, theDepartment of Justice publicized the first page of a 12-page note written by Routh several months prior to his arrest in which he described an "assassination attempt" and offered a bounty for the killing of Trump. In the letter, Routh offered $150,000 to "whomever can complete the job."[101][111]
Evidence included a handwritten list of venues where Trump had appeared or was expected to be present, dated in August through October.[112] One day before the2024 United States presidential election, Routh sent a letter to a local newsroom stating that if Trump wins the election, it will mark "the end of Democracy and the beginning of a Civil War" and that Trump "will not let go of the power given to him". He also begged thePalm Beach County Sheriff's Office to "help lead the country the way to Democracy." Prosecutors noted that Routh's handwriting of the letter matched the note written months prior.[113] Cell phone data indicating that Routhstalked Trump near his golf course and hisMar-a-Lago residence repeatedly between August 18 to September 15.[112] The car that Routh was arrested in had stolen license plates.[74] Routh may have been living in the car for a while.[114][115]
Routh pled not guilty on September 30.[116] A preliminary trial date was set by JudgeAileen Cannon for November 18.[117] On October 17, Routh's lawyers asked Cannon to recuse herself to avoid the appearance of bias in favor of Trump, due to Cannon dismissing thefederal prosecution of Trump regarding his possession of classified documents three months prior.[118] However, Cannon refused to step down.[119]
On November 26, Routh addressed a note toPolitico. In the note, he criticized both theRepublican Party and theDemocratic Party, claiming that they conspired againstindependent candidates. Routh also compared himself toThomas Matthew Crooks, the perpetrator of Trump'sprevious assassination attempt because they were both "ready to die for freedom and democracy." At multiple points, he contemplated the prospect of another civil war. Prior to sending the note, Routh told aprison guard who believed Routh was a Democrat that the Independent politicians are the better candidates. He did not explicitly confess to attempting to assassinate Trump, referring to himself as the "Trump Alleged Shooter".[120]
After appearing in federal court for a hearing on December 11, Routh's legal team announced they were considering giving Routh an insanity defense. Public defenders claimed Routh had met with mental health experts and jail mental health professionals at least twice, who all called him "delusional." Prosecutors also confirmed that Routh had written up to 40 letters to national news outlets to try to convince them he was innocent. The letters were intercepted before being received. Routh's attorneys requested for the trial to be delayed until December 2025.[121][better source needed] Cannon granted the request in part, setting a new trial date of September 8, 2025.[18][122]
On December 13, 2024, Routh wrote a two-page letter offering to be a hostage in theGaza war, stating that he was "willing to surrender in Gaza to restart the peace conversation." Routh compared himself to the characterGeorge Bailey fromIt's a Wonderful Life. Routh also expressed positive feelings toward pro-Palestinian university students. He criticized Trump for a lack of morality. Routh's daughter, Sara, wrote her signature in the letter.[123]
On February 20, 2025, Routh's defense team inspected the Trump golf course during a visit arranged by the Justice Department. After this visit, they inspected evidence from the case such as the rifle.[124] Following a court filing on March 3, defense attorney Militello requested for the rifle to be tested. Upon being questioned by Judge Cannon, Militello responded with; "The rifle is old, and we want our expert to determine if it's operable, if it's accurate, and what kind of distance it can reach." Investigators did not conduct any testing of the rifle the day of the assassination attempt because no shots were fired at the scene. Judge Cannon then promised a ruling on testing the weapon.[125]
On April 7, Routh filed an amended motion to dismiss two of the charges against him, which was "possession of a firearm by a felon" and "possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number". In the filing, Routh argued that the gun violations are unconstitutional and a violation of theSecond Amendment because the amendment does not regulate the ownership of guns by felons or serial numbers.[126] The motion was rejected by the court two days later on April 9.[127] Routh's defense claimed Tommy McGee was pressured by law enforcement agencies to identify Routh.[128]
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On July 24, Routh filed a motion to fire his public defenders and represent himself at trial. Cannon granted the motion, stating that while it was unwise, he had a constitutional right to do so. Cannon also denied his public defender's motion to withdraw, ordering them to remain as standby counsel. The decision followed repeated breakdowns in communication between Routh and his public defenders, who claimed their relationship had become "irreconcilably broken." When asked if he understood federal criminal court procedure, Routh said; "I have a book."[59] Prosecutors expressed concern that Routh may attempt to introduce inflammatory or irrelevant material in court.[129]
On September 2, the trial's final pre-trial hearing was held. The hearing was met with much drama as Routh clashed with the prosecution over his trial attire, which included banned slogan shirts. Judge Cannon had to specifically instruct Routh to dress appropriately for the court. Routh also filed a motion to add ten new witnesses to testify at the trial, including academics and a former girlfriend of his. Judge Cannon denied the motion, calling it "absurd." Routh's attempts to introduce personal letters as evidence were also dismissed.[130]
Routh's trial began on September 8, 2025,[18] and his jury was selected the following day. During the jury selection, Judge Cannon spent several minutes related to a question submitted to potential jurors by Routh, which he ultimately ended up not asking. The approximated question was; "If you were driving down the street and saw a turtle trying to cross the road, would you stop to help it or continue driving?" Routh explained that he placed an "X" next to the question when he submitted it, because he "did not think it was very good."[131] Approximately 50 witnesses were listed to potentially testify at the trial.
On September 11, Routh delivered an opening argument that began with a series of tangential historical references unrelated to his case, includingAdolf Hitler,Vladimir Putin, and the "birth of humanity." At one point, Routh got emotional while speaking. This lasted five minutes before Judge Cannon stopped him and ordered the jury out of the room. She told Routh that in an opening statement, he is only allowed to talk about valid evidence in an objective and non-argumentative way. When the jury returned, Routh began by insulting them, claiming that the case meant "absolutely nothing." Judge Cannon immediately dismissed the jury again and explained that Routh had violated the rules laid out in court and that opening statements were over.[132]
On September 12, FBI agent Aaron Casey presented a 3D reconstruction of the assassination attempt to the court.[133] On September 15, the FBI confirmed that Routh'sDNA matched the fingerprints found on the SKS rifle that he left behind at the scene of the assassination attempt. Photos of inside Routh's vehicle, as well as gas station surveillance footage and receipts, were also shown to the court that day, in which authorities revealed that Routh spent the last month prior to the assassination attempt living in a parking lot of a local truck stop in the Palm Beach County area while conducting surveillance. During this time, Routh went under the alias "Brian Wilson" and gave that name to truck stop employees and wrote it on a tag he kept on his Xterra while parked there and on a piece of paper found at the time of his initial arrest. Routh additionally occasionally stopped by a localMarathon gas station for gas, food, and other supplies during this time.[134]
On September 20, Routh filed a motion to the court to drop all of the charges against him, claiming that since the gun was never fired, prosecutors have "yet to prove" an assassination attempt on Trump took place. He also argued that the area outside Trump's golf course was a public right of way, giving anyone the right to be there with a weapon. On September 22, Routh called three witnesses to the stand, before he rested his case. He had told Judge Cannon that he would not be taking the stand to testify in his own case, a notion he had previously considered. By that point, 38 of the 50 witnesses planned to testify at the trial ended up testifying, including Robert Fercano, Tommy McGee and the Plata brothers. Routh's statements and arguments totaled about 42 minutes.[135]
On September 23, Routh was found guilty on all federal counts. The jury deliberated for around two and a half hours.[136] While the verdict was being read in the courtroom, Routh grabbed a black pen and repeatedly attempted to stab himself in the neck,[137] before Marshals tackled him to the ground and picked him up, before dragging him out of the courtroom.[138] Routh's daughter, Sara, immediately begged her father to not hurt himself and began swearing in front of the jury before storming out of the courtroom.[139] Routh returned to the courtroom soon after while handcuffed, appearing to be uninjured, with no blood visible on his white shirt and not appearing to have succeeded in harming himself. The pen Routh used was a flexible model intended to prevent it from being used as a weapon.[139][20]
Following the trial's conclusion, Sara would publicly speak to the media about the assassination attempt for the first time. She denied that her father was responsible for the assassination attempt, claiming the media was "spreading lies" about him. Sara called her father her "best friend" and that it "wasn't in her father's nature" to commit such a crime. Sara also brought up Routh's stabbing attempt in the court, saying; "Our democracy is crumbling right in front of our eyes, and no one's doing anything about it. And my dad tried to bring awareness to that."[140]
Due to his attempt to stab himself during the verdict, Routh was moved to the medical dorm of theSt. Lucie County jail under suicide observation. On October 22, the Federal Public Defender's Office requested the court to appoint an attorney to represent Routh during the sentencing. They cited that Routh regretted representing himself at trial, and that he wanted an attorney to represent him during his sentencing. The Department of Justice stated that appointing an attorney would not allow Routh to reargue his trial or question any previous court rulings.[141] On October 29, Routh filed a motion asking a federal judge to recommend he either be imprisoned in a state that authorized assisted suicide, or to be traded as a prisoner to eitherIran orChina.[142][143]
On November 10, Routh’s motion for an attorney was granted, and the scheduled sentencing hearing, originally set for December 18, was delayed to February 4, 2026 to allow time for counsel to be appointed.[144] However, for some reason the media didn't report it till December 15th, likely due to the sentencing memorandums not being submitted yet. They were both submitted on January 16, 2026. In the motion asking for counsel, Routh offered Trump to "take out his frustrations on [his] face," which Judge Cannon described as making a "mockery" of the proceedings while still allowing legal representation.[145] Routh was eventually sentenced to life in prison without parole, plus a mandatory additional seven years for a firearm offense. Routh's defense had sought a reduced sentence of 27 years, citing his age and other factors, but Cannon rejected that request.[21]
From July to August 2024, Routh conspired with a former employee of his, 58-year-old Tina Brown Cooper (bornc. 1966), and her boss at the time, 54-year-old Ronnie Jay Oxendine (bornc. December 1969), to obtain a rifle as part of his assassination plot.[146][15][16][17]
In July 2024, Routh called Cooper saying he would soon be visiting Greensboro and that he needed help buying a rifle, but he could not obtain one himself due to his criminal record.[16] Cooper agreed to assist him and later reached out to Oxendine asking him if he was willing to sell her a gun he owned, as she initially did not want Oxendine knowing it was for Routh. Oxendine agreed to sell an SKS rile, and planned to meet atOxendine and Son Roofing Company.[15][16][17]
On August 2, Oxendine met Cooper along with her daughter and Routh. He was surprised to see Routh arrive, as they were both owners of local roofing companies throughout the 1990's, however they had not spoken to each other in approximately ten years. Cooper told Oxendine that the rifle was actually for Routh, but she had not told him because she believed he may have taken issue with selling Routh a weapon. Routh paid Oxendine $350 in cash for the rifle and paid Cooper $100 in cash for arranging the sale.[15][16][17][146] The rifle's serial number was removed by Routh shortly after.[59]
Following the assassination attempt, Cooper deleted all traces of Routh off of her cellphone, and instructed Oxendine to refuse to cooperate with the FBI.[59][146][15][16][17] She was later interviewed byThe Independent, claiming she had not spoken to Routh since 2004, where she claimed he abruptly fired her after a falling out.[60]
On September 22, FBI agents interviewed Oxendine inClimax, North Carolina. Oxendine said he met Routh approximately 30 years earlier, however they were not friends. He then falsely told the agents that Routh had pawned an SKS rifle to him for approximately $300 around that time period. Oxendine later admitted that he lied in order to minimize his role in the assassination attempt. He additionally admitted to his role in the sale of the rifle to Routh the month prior.[146]
Later the same day, the agents interviewed Cooper in Greensboro. She told them that she met Routh in 1999 while she was an employee of his roofing business in Greensboro. She said she became aware of Routh's lengthy criminal record in 2002, after his conviction for possessing a weapon of mass death and destruction. ThroughFacebook, Cooper had several conversations with Routh between 2014 and 2022. Additionally, Cooper told the agents that she was "guilty" of assisting Routh, whom she knew was a convicted felon, in acquiring a firearm. She also confessed to instructing Oxendine to refuse to cooperate with the FBI once they learned of the assassination attempt.[15] A review of Cooper's device found that she had deleted traces of Routh off her cellphone, including call logs and text messages. The agents then asked Cooper if she had instructed any other person to lie to the FBI or mislead their investigation, which she denied on multiple occasions. Both Oxendine and Cooper told the agents that they had no prior knowledge of Routh’s intentions to assassinate Trump.[59][146][15]
Cooper and Oxendine were both indicted in March 2025, and were arrested the following month. Cooper pleaded guilty tofirearm trafficking for her role in the assassination attempt, while Oxendine pleaded guilty to possessing an unregistered firearm after police found an unregistered short-barreled shotgun in a storage unit he owned.[16][17] Cooper faces 15 years in prison, while Oxendine faces 10 years in prison. Both of them additionally face a $250,000 fine.[147]
On September 17, 2025, Oxendine testified as a witness at Routh's trial. He detailed how he and Cooper arranged the sale of the rifle to Routh the year prior. Routh apologized to Oxendine and offered to serve part of his prison sentence, saying; "I know you're extremely mad at me." This prompted Judge Cannon to intervene and warn Routh about violating his time on the lectern. Cooper refused to testify as a witness at the trial.[147][148]
On April 7, 2025, an indictment by federal prosecutors alleged that Routh had a conversation onWhatsApp with a man from Mexico saved in his phone as "Ramiro" on February 29, 2024 about potentially smuggling an Afghanistani migrant family into the United States from Mexico. The indictment claimed that the man spoke mostly Spanish, and that Routh occasionally usedGoogle Translate to communicate with him. Their next alleged conversation occurred seven months later on September 12, where Routh allegedly sent a message stating that he planned on fleeing toMexico City following the assassination attempt, with "Ramiro" allegedly responding that he would see Routh then and that he was located four hours outside of Mexico City. Routh allegedly replied that he would call "Ramiro" once he knew for sure whether or not he’d meet him.[128]
Routh also allegedly sought to obtain military weapons in August 2024 as part of his assassination plot from someone he believed to be a Ukrainian. Routh allegedly told this associate through WhatsApp to send him arocket-propelled grenade or a stinger, stating that he "needed equipment so that Trump couldn't get elected." Routh also allegedly discussed the idea of using a rocket launcher to shoot down Trump's plane.[149]
According to posts on hisTwitter account in 2020, Routh's political views have evolved over the years. Routh said he made Donald Trump his "choice" in 2016, but by 2020, he voiced his dissatisfaction, stating, "I will be glad when you are gone."[150][151] Voting records showed that Routh requested anabsentee ballot in 2016, but did not actually vote.[152] In a self-publishede-book (Ukraine's Unwinnable War: The Fatal Flaw of Democracy, World Abandonment and the Global Citizen-Taiwan, Afghanistan, North Korea and the end [sic] of Humanity)[4] in 2023, he wrote about his stated previous support for Trump by stating, "I am man enough to say that I misjudged and made a terrible mistake." He further went on to write "you are free to assassinate Trump as well as me for that error in judgement".[37] The passage in question was specifically addressed to the Iranian government.[153] His son Oran stated that Routh hated Trump like "every reasonable person does."[47]
Routh supportedBernie Sanders in 2020, criticizingJoe Biden as "Sleepy Joe". In 2024, he expressed concern over democracy in a post tagging Biden, and telling him his campaign slogan should be "Keep America Democratic and Free".[154] In 2020, he also supportedTulsi Gabbard, calling for an executive order on police misconduct,[155] and he made several small donations to the Democratic fundraising platformActBlue, contributing 19 times in 2019 and 2020 with amounts ranging from $1 to $25, as recorded by theFederal Election Commission.[43] By early 2024, he suggested aNikki Haley andVivek Ramaswamy ticket for the Republican primary.[156] In 2024, he voted in the Democratic primary in Guilford County, North Carolina.[63] Routh had additionally donated $140 toDemocratic causes since 2019. He registered in North Carolina as anindependent voter in 2012.[37][39]
Routh has stated his support forTaiwan, and in his self-published text discussed its political status and called for international intervention to protect the island fromChina.[4] In various posts on hisTwitter account in 2023, Routh tagged theHaitian National Police and asserted that he had thousands ofNATO-trained Afghan soldiers who "wish to serve for theHaiti national police at cheap wages."[157][158] Routh donated throughActBlue 20 times. He has donated $140 exclusively to Democrats and to Gabbard (at the time a Democrat).[159][better source needed]
Media related toRyan Wesley Routh at Wikimedia Commons
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