By Kevin Akor
FORT PIERCE, Fla. (chatnewstv.com) — A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced Ryan Wesley Routh to life in prison plus seven years for attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump and for assaulting a federal law enforcement officer, capping a case prosecutors described as a direct attack on American democracy.
Routh, 59, was convicted by a federal jury on five counts, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate and multiple firearms offenses. U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon imposed the sentence in federal court in South Florida.
“Ryan Routh’s heinous attempted assassination of President Trump was not only an attack on our President — it was a direct assault against our entire democratic system,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement. “Routh will never walk free again.”
The case stemmed from a September 2024 incident at Trump International Golf Club, where then–U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Robert Fercano spotted Routh pointing what appeared to be an AK-47-style rifle from a concealed position along a fence line near the course, authorities said. Fearing for his life and that of Trump, Fercano fired, and Routh fled, prosecutors said.
Law enforcement later recovered a Norinco SKS rifle equipped with a scope, a loaded magazine with 19 rounds and one round chambered, steel armor plates and a camera aimed at the sixth green, where Trump was expected to play, according to trial evidence.
“Routh’s plan to kill a major presidential candidate, President Donald Trump, was a despicable attack on our democratic system,” FBI Director Kash Patel said. “Today’s sentencing demonstrates the justice system will not tolerate such heinous attacks.”
A civilian witness reported seeing Routh flee the area in a black Nissan Xterra. He was arrested shortly afterward on Interstate 95 by Martin County sheriff’s deputies, with assistance from Palm Beach County authorities. Investigators said a search of the vehicle uncovered multiple mobile phones and a list of international flights with directions to Miami International Airport.
Cellphone records showed Routh’s phone accessed towers near Trump International Golf Club and Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence on multiple occasions in the weeks leading up to the attack, prosecutors said.
During the two-week trial, jurors also heard testimony that Routh left a box at a witness’s home months earlier containing a handwritten letter addressed “Dear World,” in which he wrote, “This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I am so sorry I failed you.”
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg called the sentence “a resounding rejection of political violence.”
“We resolve our differences through civil discourse, democratic elections, and lawful protest, not by force,” Eisenberg said.
U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones credited the actions of the Secret Service agent who confronted Routh, saying his response “protected lives and prevented a national tragedy.”
“Political violence is un-American and will never be tolerated,” Reding Quiñones said. “This life sentence ensures the defendant will never again threaten public safety.”
The FBI led the investigation with assistance from the U.S. Secret Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and local law enforcement agencies.
