Trump judge Aileen Cannon won't remove herself from Ryan Routh case

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon owes her lifetime appointment to the man Ryan Routh is accused of trying to kill.

FORT PIERCE — Dismissed federal judge despite concerns about his impartiality Donald Trump’s secret documents case will not transfer case against Ryan RouthThe man accused of trying to kill her.

US District Judge Aileen Ball He issued an order Tuesday denying Routh’s request to recuse himself from the case. He maintained in the ruling that he had no relationship with Trump and did not intend to let accusations to the contrary undermine his ability to oversee the proceedings.

His order eased concerns grew up two weeks ago By Routh’s team of public defenders, Kristy Militello and Renee Sihvola. In their motion, the lawyers stated that they believed Cannon would act impartially, but they were afraid the public might think otherwise.

Cannon has been criticized for decisions that appeared to favor the former president without legal basis. In 2022, he passed a motion temporarily blocking investigators from accessing documents seized at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach. Two years later he He denied all 40 serious charges against him.

The appeals court overturned the previous decision and is considering doing the same to the second. These decisions are the same ones that Trump praised while campaigning for a second term.

Militello and Sihvola pointed out these decisions and Trump’s words about Cannon in their motion to dismiss. Lawyers suggested people might believe Cannon has “feelings of personal loyalty and gratitude” to Trump, who could appoint him to a higher court if re-elected.

Cannon said the allegations were stretched, speculative and unsupported by law.

“I have no control over what citizens, members of the media, public officials, or candidates say about me or my judicial decisions,” the judge wrote. “I’m also not interested in the political consequences of my decisions or how those decisions might be viewed by ‘some people in the media.'”

Cannon promised to administer justice impartially in accordance with his judicial oath. He also rejected the idea that recusing himself was necessary to eliminate suspicions that he had been deliberately assigned to the case.

“This case, like the previously mentioned cases involving former President Trump, was randomly assigned to me through the Clerk’s random case assignment system. Period,” Cannon wrote. “To the contrary, I will not be guided by deeply inaccurate, uninformed or speculative views.”

Ryan Routh remains in federal custody as judge considers recusal

While Trump’s classified documents case was about national security and obstruction of justice, Routh’s case was about attempted murder. The charge is one of several brought by federal prosecutors following his arrest on Sept. 15. If convicted, Cannon could sentence him to life in prison.

Routh also faces charges of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, stalking and assaulting a federal officer. He pleaded not guilty to each.

Investigators believe Routh traveled from Greensboro, North Carolina to West Palm Beach on August 14. Routh went to Trump International Golf Club in the suburbs of West Palm Beach and Mar-a-Lago multiple times during the month, according to data from his cell phone. Before the suspected assassination attempt.

Routh staked out Trump International for 12 hours on Sept. 15, behind high fences and fences, armed with a loaded rifle and a bag of mini sausages. Prosecutors described Routh’s setup as a “sniper’s nest” equipped with two bulletproof plates and a scope taped to his gun.

A U.S. Secret Service agent spotted Routh near the course’s sixth hole. Not yet within sight of the gunman, Trump was on the fifth hole. The agent called out to the gunman and then noticed the barrel of a rifle “pointed directly at him.” The agent fired several shots.

None of them landed. Routh, who investigators said did not return fire, fled on foot toward a black Nissan Xterra parked across the street. A nearby driver reported making eye contact with Routh as he ran away. The witness took a photo of Routh’s car and noted everything except the last digit of his license plate.

Authorities arrested Routh on Interstate 95 in Martin County. Inside the Xterra, agents found two additional license plates, six cellphones (one of which contained the Google search query “how to travel from Palm Beach County to Mexico”), 12 pairs of gloves, a passport and a handwritten note of where Trump would be staying. discovered the list. was scheduled to appear.

Prosecutors released excerpts from a handwritten letter believed to have been written by Routh and addressed to “The World.” The letter said:

“This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump, but I failed you. I did my best and showed all the courage I could muster. Now it’s up to you to finish the job; I’ll offer $150,000 to whoever can complete the job.”

Other parts of the letter seem to suggest that the author intended for the assassination attempt to fail. Militello claimed at Routh’s detention hearing that he staged the attempt for publicity purposes rather than harm.

Routh, whose trial is scheduled to begin Feb. 10, remains in federal custody.

Hannah Phillips covers criminal justice at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at: [email protected]. Help support our journalism and subscribe today.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon owes her lifetime appointment to the man Ryan Routh is accused of trying to kill.

Ryan Routh remains in federal custody as judge considers recusal

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