Jury selection kicked off Monday, September 8 in Fort Pierce, Florida, in a federal courthouse in the high-stakes federal trial of Ryan Wesley Routh – the man accused of trying to turn a Trump golf outing into a headline moment by (allegedly) planning to shoot and kill Donald J. Trump.
Representing himself, Routh is navigating his “pro se” status under the watchful eye of Trump-nominated Judge Aileen Cannon. Routh is accused of plotting to assassinate Trump at his West Palm Beach golf club on September 15 of 2024. Routh had sent the judge a letter about his plans, saying, “I will be representing myself moving forward; It was ridiculous from the outset to consider a random stranger that knows nothing of who I am to speak for me.”
Routh faces charges of attempted assassination of a presidential candidate, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, assaulting a federal officer, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. He also has separate state counts of attempted murder and terrorism. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Jury selection is expected to be done on Wednesday after a “fair” and “impartial” group of folks is chosen – if that is even possible. Routh, because he represents himself, is able to question the potential jury members himself although he was blocked by Cannon from posing most of his proposed jury questions, which she deemed “politically charged” and irrelevant.
Some of those questions, according to ABC News, included questions about Trump’s proposed acquisition of Greenland and he country’s stance on Palestine as well as if the jurors would do if they were driving and saw a turtle in the middle of the road.
Additionally, the (alleged) crackpot, before deciding to be his own attorney, demanded a “beatdown session” with Trump, challenged the president to a sudden-death golf match for his freedom, and even pitched himself as a pawn in a prisoner swap instead of facing a jury.
Routh most likely will be treating the courtroom like an improv stage, but the stakes couldn’t be higher. The case isn’t about golf challenges, turtles, or Greenland – it’s about whether a man tried to assassinate a former president (and presidential candidate) and what his penalty will be in a mostly accountability-free America.
As jury selection wraps up and testimony begins, the nation will be waiting to see if Routh’s theatrics can distract from the gravity of the charges, if a Democrat is able to sneak on the jury to cause a mistrial, or if the weight of evidence will (as it should) crush Routh’s self-styled defense.