DeSantis: State will prosecute would-be Trump assassin for attempted murder

Screenshot from Florida Channel of Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody and Gov. Ron DeSantis in West Palm Beach on Sept. 17, 2024.Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday that it is in the best interest of the state and the country for Florida to conduct its own investigation into the alleged attempted assassination of Donald Trump Sunday in Palm Beach County.

Consequently, he signed an executive order assigning the case to the Office of Statewide Prosecutor, which will work under the supervision of Attorney General Ashley Moody. The office handles cross-jurisdictional crime.

“The state of Florida has jurisdiction over the most serious straightforward offense, which is attempted murder,” said DeSantis, speaking from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. “I’ve directed state agencies to move expeditiously and provide full transparency to the public.”

The federal government has already filed gun charges against the suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, who is from Hawaii, but no other crimes at this point.

Routh appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ryon McCabe in West Palm Beach federal court on Monday and was charged with possession of a firearm as a convicted felon and for obliterating the serial number on a firearm, according to court records.

If convicted, he would face up to 20 years in prison. He is being held in pretrial detention in the Palm Beach County Jail, according to a criminal complaint filed by FBI special agent Mark Thomas.

According to court records, the incident took place on Sunday afternoon while Trump was playing golf at the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach. A Secret Service agent spotted an armed man (later identified Routh) holding a rifle near the tree line of the golf course.

The agent fired towards Routh, who fled before he was picked up by Martin County sheriff’s deputies.

Trump, the Republican nominee for president, has a residence at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach County.

More serious charges

In addition to the fact that Florida can charge Routh with more serious charges than the federal government can at this time (which would not be the case if Trump were the sitting president or president-elect), DeSantis, Moody, and other agency heads who spoke at Tuesday’s press conference acknowledged that politics was also why they believe Florida’s law enforcement agencies would be more appropriate to prosecute Routh than the federal government.

They asserted that the federal agencies investigating the case are the same ones prosecuting Trump on two separate charges: for allegedly mishandling classified documents at Mar-a-Lago as well as alleged attempts to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election in Washington D.C.

“It is awkward to say the least to have a prosecutorial agency and an investigatory agency that is bringing charges and seeking to put the victim away for life being the same agency and prosecutors that are going after the would-be assassin,” said Moody.

“It’s not like these are prosecutions that the American people have rallied behind,” DeSantis added. “It has divided this country in big ways, and so the question is, you have those prosecutions — do we honestly think this agency or these agencies are the best to turn around and do this investigation on a potential assassin?”

Moody said she hopes federal and state agencies could work on dual investigative tracks, saying there is nothing unusual about that situation.

“If the higher ups in the federal government refuse to provide the light and transparency, then we will fight in the shade,” said Dave Kerner, executive director of the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, which oversees the Florida Highway Patrol, which will participate along with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

DeSantis was adamant that Routh should be prosecuted for the most serious offense possible.

“I think it’s really important for the people of Florida and the country we pursue the most serious charges that are on the books to hold this guy accountable, and to say you’re going to do a couple of gun charges, that is not going to be sufficient to do it,” he said.

Assist for Secret Service

While Congress looks into whether the Secret Service failed had again after a gunman allegedly attempted to kill Trump in July in Pennsylvania, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said he is prepared to provide the agency all the resources it needs to protect Trump.

“Right now, at Mar-a-Lago it’s the highest level it can be,” he said of security.

“It’s the same level as when he was president, and I can almost assure you that when he travels or if he plays golf again, things will probably change, but my commitment to him is I will make sure that my resources are dedicated to the Secret Service to keep him safe.”

And while the press conference was mostly devoid of partisan politics, Moody, a potential 2026 gubernatorial candidate, criticized President Joe Biden for his comments on Sunday and earlier this year following the first assassination attempt against Trump.

“I will just say that it was really disappointing to hear President Biden say that President Trump should be put in a bullseye just days before we saw the first assassination attempt, and then weeks later at the DNC say that that threat was still very much alive, and now again, another 30 days another assassination attempt,” she said.

Biden later acknowledged that it was a “mistake” to say that he wanted to put a “bullseye” on Trump just days before that first assassination attempt.