Attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Florida

Attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Florida
Attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Florida
Part of security incidents involving Donald Trump
	Backpack and SKS-pattern rifle in concealed location
	Location of the incident
Location	Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S.
Coordinates	26°40′00″N 80°5′21″W / 26.66667°N 80.08917°W
Date	September 15, 2024 ; 1:31 p.m. (UTC−04:00)
Target	Donald Trump
Attack type	Assassination attempt
Weapon	SKS-style rifle
Deaths	0
Injured	1 (allegedly)
Motive	Under investigation
Accused	Ryan Wesley Routh
Charges	8 counts Attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate ; Attempted first-degree murder ; Terrorism ; Assaulting a federal officer ; Criminal possession of a firearm (×3) ; Attempted felony murder;

On September 15, 2024, Donald Trump, the then-former president of the United States and then-nominee of the Republican Party in the 2024 presidential election, survived an assassination attempt while golfing at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. A suspect, later identified as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh, was spotted hiding in nearby shrubbery while aiming a rifle at a member of Trump's security detail.^[4] A Secret Service agent fired upon Routh, who fled the scene and was later captured in Martin County.^[5] No injuries were reported.

Officials say that Routh intended to shoot Trump,^[6]^[7]^[8] and Routh had been indicted on five federal charges by September 24, including attempting to assassinate a presidential candidate. The incident occurred two months after Trump survived a previous assassination attempt while speaking at a campaign rally near Butler, Pennsylvania. On April 7, 2025, an indictment revealed that Routh had at least two accomplices; one in Ukraine with access to military weapons, and the other being a smuggler in Mexico going by the alias "Ramiro"; both whom Routh communicated with through the instant messaging app WhatsApp.^[9]^[10] Both accomplices are currently unidentified. Routh was charged with attempted first-degree murder and terrorism as a result.^[3] Routh has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and a preliminary trial date has been set for September 8, 2025.^[11] Routh could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted.^[12]

^ Tucker, Eric; Richer, Alanna Durkin; Matat, Stephany (September 23, 2024). "U.S. to seek attempted assassination charge against man accused of staking out Trump at golf course". CTV News via Associated Press. Archived from the original on September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
^ Rozsa, Lori; Berman, Mark; Stein, Perry; Barrett, Devlin (September 23, 2024). "Trump gunman said to have left note: 'This was an assassination attempt'". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
^ ^a ^b Cite error: The named reference Routhcharged was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Lapointe, Markenzy (September 23, 2024). "Written Factual Proffer in Support of Pretrial Detention" (PDF). Fox News. FOX Television Stations. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
^ Devine, Curt; Chapman, Isabelle; et al. (September 16, 2024). "Man detained in apparent assassination attempt on Trump criticized former president on social media". CNN. Archived from the original on September 16, 2024. Retrieved September 16, 2024.
^ "Ryan Wesley Routh Indicted for Attempted Assassination of Former President Trump". www.justice.gov. United States Department of Justice. September 24, 2024. Archived from the original on October 5, 2024. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
^ Holmes, Kristen; Millar, John; Sullivan, Kate; Perez, Evan; Herb, Jeremy (September 15, 2024). "Trump is safe following shooting at Florida golf course; suspect detained". CNN. Archived from the original on September 16, 2024. Retrieved September 15, 2024.
^ Shen, Michelle; LeBlanc, Paul; D'Antonio, Isabelle; Forrest, Jack; Chowdhury, Maureen (September 15, 2024). "Live updates: FBI investigating apparent assassination attempt of Trump in Florida". CNN. Archived from the original on September 16, 2024. Retrieved September 16, 2024.
^ Cite error: The named reference RouthApril9indictment was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference RouthApril9indictment2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Shields, Malcolm. "Federal judge sets trial date for Ryan Routh". WPBF. Retrieved December 24, 2024.
^ Lewis, Kaitlin (November 4, 2024). "Trump Suspect Ryan Routh Predicts Civil War if Donald Wins". Newsweek. Retrieved November 4, 2024.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

[1] Tucker, Eric; Richer, Alanna Durkin; Matat, Stephany (September 23, 2024). "U.S. to seek attempted assassination charge against man accused of staking out Trump at golf course". CTV News via Associated Press. Archived from the original on September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.

[2] Rozsa, Lori; Berman, Mark; Stein, Perry; Barrett, Devlin (September 23, 2024). "Trump gunman said to have left note: 'This was an assassination attempt'". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.

[Routhcharged-4] Cite error: The named reference Routhcharged was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[DOJ_Detention_Memo-5] Lapointe, Markenzy (September 23, 2024). "Written Factual Proffer in Support of Pretrial Detention" (PDF). Fox News. FOX Television Stations. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2024.

[6] Devine, Curt; Chapman, Isabelle; et al. (September 16, 2024). "Man detained in apparent assassination attempt on Trump criticized former president on social media". CNN. Archived from the original on September 16, 2024. Retrieved September 16, 2024.

[7] "Ryan Wesley Routh Indicted for Attempted Assassination of Former President Trump". www.justice.gov. United States Department of Justice. September 24, 2024. Archived from the original on October 5, 2024. Retrieved October 5, 2024.

[CNN-8] Holmes, Kristen; Millar, John; Sullivan, Kate; Perez, Evan; Herb, Jeremy (September 15, 2024). "Trump is safe following shooting at Florida golf course; suspect detained". CNN. Archived from the original on September 16, 2024. Retrieved September 15, 2024.

[FBI-9] Shen, Michelle; LeBlanc, Paul; D'Antonio, Isabelle; Forrest, Jack; Chowdhury, Maureen (September 15, 2024). "Live updates: FBI investigating apparent assassination attempt of Trump in Florida". CNN. Archived from the original on September 16, 2024. Retrieved September 16, 2024.

[RouthApril9indictment-10] Cite error: The named reference RouthApril9indictment was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[RouthApril9indictment2-11] Cite error: The named reference RouthApril9indictment2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[WPBF-12] Shields, Malcolm. "Federal judge sets trial date for Ryan Routh". WPBF. Retrieved December 24, 2024.

[Nov4-13] Lewis, Kaitlin (November 4, 2024). "Trump Suspect Ryan Routh Predicts Civil War if Donald Wins". Newsweek. Retrieved November 4, 2024.

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