The prosecution rested Friday in the trial of Ryan Routh, accused of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, in September 2024.
FBI Supervisory Special Agent Kimberly McGreevy was the government's final witness, testifying throughout the day about the digital trail Routh left as he allegedly planned to shoot Trump at the Trump International Golf Club, ABC News reported.
Jurors have heard more than a week of testimony from law enforcement officers, expert witnesses and others who described what prosecutors said was an elaborate plot. McGreevy said Routh, 59, spent the month before the incident living out of a gas station in Palm Beach County, with receipts, cell tower data and license plate reader evidence showing his movements.
"He was living at the truck stop, conducting physical and electronic surveillance, stalking the president," McGreevy told jurors.
Prosecutors said Routh, a construction worker from North Carolina, was hiding near the course on Sept. 15, 2024, when a Secret Service agent spotted him with a rifle barrel protruding through a fence line. Routh allegedly fled in a black Nissan Xterra and was arrested later that day on a nearby interstate.
Representing himself, Routh will begin his defense Monday before U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee who previously oversaw the Biden administration's classified documents prosecution against Trump before dismissing it.
Routh is expected to call three witnesses, including a firearms expert, and told the court testimony would likely take less than a day, according to the Palm Beach Post. Cannon said closing arguments are expected Tuesday, meaning jurors could begin deliberating as early as next week.
Routh faces five charges: attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal officer, using a firearm in furtherance of a crime, possessing a firearm as a felon, and possessing a firearm with a defaced serial number. The most serious charge carries a potential life sentence.
After prosecutors rested, Routh moved for acquittal on four of the five charges, arguing the government had not proved intent.
"The gun was never fired, and nothing ever happened as far as taking a substantial step to kill the former president," he said, according to the Post.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John Shipley countered that Routh purchased a rifle in the weeks before the incident and loaded it on the day in question, pointing it through a fence as Trump played golf.
Routh also argued he had a right to protest at the golf course. Shipley rejected that claim: "Peaceful protest is one thing. An assassination attempt is another."
Cannon denied Routh's acquittal motions, ruling that all five charges will go to the jury.
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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