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A federal judge in Florida sentenced this Wednesday to life in prison Ryan Wesley Routh, the man accused of plotting the assassination of Donald Trump during an incident that occurred in 2024 at the Trump International Golf Club, a case that shook the presidential campaign and once again raised alarm for security services in the United States.
According to Telemundo, Routh, 60 years old, appeared before U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in Fort Pierce, where he was also sentenced to seven years in prison for possession of a firearm.
Judge Aileen M. Cannon described the assassination attempt against the then-Republican presidential candidate as "a deliberate and wicked plot to kill," and told Routh, "you are not a good man," the outlet reported.
The magistrate gave Routh the opportunity to address the court, but he did not speak about the crime or his sentence, and his final statement was very similar to the one he made during the trial. Ultimately, Cannon interrupted him.
In a confusing message in the hearing room, Routh downplayed the sentence against him and requested the court to commit him to an assisted suicide center.
"My sentence has no importance, just as unimportant as I am," he said, conceding that he "failed once again," as his plan was to swap places with a Hamas prisoner.
This was the assassination attempt on Trump
The agents of the United States Secret Service noticed the tip of a semiautomatic rifle sticking out among the bushes that border the Trump International Golf Club field in West Palm Beach.
Local authorities said that the gunman was about 400 to 500 meters from Trump and hidden among the bushes while Donald Trump was playing a round of golf.
An agent fired and Routh dropped the rifle and fled in a truck, leaving the firearm behind along with two backpacks, a scope used for aiming, and a GoPro camera, said Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw. Routh was later apprehended by police in a neighboring county.
Routh does not regret, according to the Prosecutor's Office
The sentencing of Routh was initially scheduled for December, but Cannon agreed to postpone it after Routh decided to seek legal counsel during the sentencing phase instead of representing himself, as he had done for most of the trial.
The prosecution stated in a sentencing memorandum presented last month that Routh has not yet accepted any responsibility for his actions and that he should spend the rest of his life in prison, according to federal sentencing guidelines.
"Routh still does not regret his crimes, he has never apologized for the lives he put at risk, and his life shows an almost complete disregard for the law," the memorandum states.
Routh's new defense attorney, Martin L. Roth, is asking the judge for a variation in the sentencing guidelines: 20 years in prison in addition to a mandatory seven-year sentence for one of the firearm convictions.
Who is Ryan Routh?
According to public records, Ryan Routh spent most of his life in North Carolina before moving in 2018 to Kaaawa, Hawaii, where he was working alongside his son in a small business dedicated to building sheds, according to files from the company’s website.
During his time in Greensboro, Routh had several encounters with authorities. Among them is a conviction in 2022 for possession of a machine gun, as well as a previous sentence in 2002 for possession of a weapon deemed a weapon of mass destruction, according to records from the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections.
On social media, their most recent posts reflected an increasing rejection of Donald Trump, along with messages of support for President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
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