A federal judge on Wednesday handed down the harshest possible punishment to Ryan Wesley Routh, the Florida man convicted of attempting to assassinate President Donald J. Trump, sentencing him to life in prison without parole plus an additional seven years behind bars. The sentence ensures Routh will die in prison.
Routh, 60, was found guilty by a federal jury in September 2025 on five felony counts, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate and firearms offenses tied to his plot at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach in September 2024. Prosecutors presented evidence that Routh spent weeks planning the attack, building a hidden position and pointing an SKS-style rifle through shrubbery toward then-candidate Trump and a Secret Service agent.
During the trial, Routh took the extraordinary step of representing himself, and moments after the guilty verdict was read, he tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen in open court, prompting marshals to intervene.
At Wednesday’s sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon rejected defense arguments for a reduced term, including calls for mental health treatment instead of incarceration. The judge also imposed a mandatory additional seven-year firearm sentence on top of the life term recommended by prosecutors.
Routh’s defense team said they plan to appeal the sentence, arguing he never fired a shot and that his self-representation hampered his ability to defend himself. Prosecutors countered that the extensive planning and steps Routh took toward killing the president demonstrated clear intent to commit political violence.
The sentencing comes as part of broader efforts to strengthen protections after multiple security incidents involving senior political figures in recent years.
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