A federal judge in Florida on Thursday rejected an attempt by a local man to dismiss key charges related to an alleged 2024 assassination attempt on President Donald Trump. The ruling deals a significant blow to the defense team of Ryan Routh, who stands accused of planning to shoot Trump with a high-powered rifle at the Trump International Golf Club.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee who has previously drawn attention for rulings favorable to the president in his classified documents case, denied Routh’s motion to dismiss two counts from his five-count federal indictment. These include possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number and illegal firearm possession as a convicted felon.
Routh’s legal team argued that these charges were unconstitutional and violated his Second Amendment rights. Routh has a prior conviction for possessing dynamite, which legally bars him from owning firearms. However, Judge Cannon rejected the motion, siding with federal prosecutors who argued that firearms with obliterated serial numbers have no lawful purpose,” according to NPR.
Quoting a recent legal precedent from United States v. Price (2024), she wrote, “If he can be constitutionally prohibited from possessing any firearm without running afoul of the Second Amendment, then he can surely be prohibited from possessing a discrete subset of firearms — namely, firearms with obliterated serial numbers — without running afoul of it too.”
Routh is currently facing a five-count federal indictment that includes attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, assault of a federal officer, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime. The charges stem from a September 2024 incident in which a Secret Service agent reportedly spotted Routh near the 6th hole of the Trump International Golf Club in Florida, where Trump was golfing just one hole behind.
The agent opened fire when Routh was seen with a rifle in the brush along the fence line. Routh then fled the scene in a Nissan Xterra. Investigators later linked Routh to a letter recovered at the scene, addressed to the “world,” in which he wrote, “This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump, but I am so sorry I failed you.”
Court documents indicate that Routh had been hiding near the course for approximately 12 hours, waiting for Trump to appear. Routh has pleaded not guilty to all federal charges and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted. He also faces additional state charges, including attempted first-degree murder and terrorism.
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