David Aronberg, the Democrat state attorney for Florida's Palm Beach County, told Newsmax on Monday he expects more charges to be delivered against Ryan Wesley Routh, the alleged gunman involved in a possible second assassination attempt in two months against former President Donald Trump on Sunday.
Routh, 58, made his initial court appearance earlier in the day and was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession and receipt of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
If convicted, Routh, who is being held at Palm Beach County jail, faces up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the first charge and five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the second, according to the criminal complaint.
"I do think that it's probable that there's going to be more charges," Aronberg told "American Agenda." "These are the low-hanging fruit. Prosecutors at the federal level want to keep this guy behind bars, and he's not going anywhere. So, they filed what I think are the easiest charges against him, which are still serious.
"This is enough to keep him incarcerated while they develop other potential charges. … I don't think it's over yet."
Palm Beach County is where Trump International Golf Course, the scene of Sunday's alleged assassination attempt, and Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate are located. Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wrote Sunday in a post on X that the state will be conducting its own investigation into the alleged assassination attempt, but Aronberg said it's not necessary.
"He hasn't called me or my office about it," Aronberg said. "When the feds came in and said they were going to take jurisdiction, we stood down. That's the normal process. Now, if the governor wants to spend taxpayer money to duplicate the investigation, he can. He has the right to do so through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. But keep in mind, it's not so easy because the evidence is in the possession of the feds, and they're not going to turn over the evidence until this case is over.
"It's, to me, distressing when you have such distrust here that the governor distrusts the federal government so much that they're going to do a separate investigation that I think is just duplicative without even knowing what the feds are coming up with. So, I don't think it's necessary at this point."
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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