A jury convicted Ryan Routh of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump on Tuesday.
It only took the jury about two hours and 20 minutes of deliberation to come up with a guilty verdict. He was convicted of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal officer, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
Routh faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
🚨MAJOR BREAKING: Attempted Trump assassin Ryan Routh FOUND GUILTY ON ALL CHARGES, faces LIFE in prison.
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) September 23, 2025
Good. pic.twitter.com/beZzSaRTT9
The defendant reportedly tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen after the verdict was read. US Marshals stopped and restrained him.
NOW - Ryan Routh tries to stab himself in the neck with a pen after his guilty verdict was read. pic.twitter.com/gQh2Tpja9a
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) September 23, 2025
Routh, 59, was a resident of Hawaii and a former supporter of President Trump. He was arrested on September 15, 2024, after the assassination attempt. He was apprehended shortly after Secret Service agents spotted him hiding out in a shrubbery near the fifth hole of a golf course where Trump was playing. He pointed a semiautomatic rifle through a fence in the direction the president was located.
The agents fired at Routh, who fled the scene without firing a shot. The authorities found and arrested him about 45 minutes later on Interstate 95. Investigators recovered the rifle and bullet-resistant plates with Routh’s fingerprints on the rifle scope.
The authorities found that Routh had tracked the president’s movements for weeks, searched his campaign schedule, and lived in his vehicle while scouting out locations.
Recommended
The defendant had left a letter in a box at a friend’s house months earlier, confessing to the attempt and offering a $150,000 bounty to anyone who could finish the job if he failed.
Routh pleaded not guilty to all charges. He chose to represent himself after conflicts with his public defenders, even though the judge warned that it was a “bad idea.”
The prosecution called 38 witnesses, including law enforcement officers and experts. Routh called only three witnesses, including a firearms expert who indicated the rifle’s scope was poorly mounted (with glue and tape) but still functional.
Routh argued that the prosecution failed to prove intent, saying, “No one ever intended to kill anyone” and denying that he aimed his rifle at the Secret Service agent.
Editor’s Note: Democrat politicians and their radical supporters will do everything they can to interfere with and threaten ICE agents enforcing our immigration laws.
Help us hold these leftists accountable and expose their obstruction. Join Townhall VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member