Ryan Routh, the man convicted of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump in September 2024, was sentenced to life in prison by a federal judge on Wednesday.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon handed down the sentence nearly five months after a jury found Routh guilty of all five counts related to the failed assassination plot. Routh represented himself during the trial in September 2025 but requested an attorney for sentencing.
The Justice Department argued Routh should be sentenced to life in prison and claimed he has still not shown remorse for his actions.
“Routh’s crimes undeniably warrant a life sentence—he took steps over the course of months to assassinate a major Presidential candidate, demonstrated the will to kill anybody in the way, and has since expressed neither regret nor remorse to his victims,” DOJ attorneys said in court filings.
“The Constitution affords citizens many peaceful avenues to oppose or express strong dissent about a Presidential candidate—murder is not one of them,” DOJ attorneys said.
In court filings ahead of sentencing, Routh’s lawyer asked for a sentence of 20 years “followed by the required 7 year mandatory sentence” for one of the firearm offenses. Routh’s lawyer also claimed his client did not commit an act of terrorism and pointed to his age as the reason for the proposed 20-year sentence.
“Defendant would be in custody into his eighties and would not pose any threat to cause harm to the public,” the brief from Routh’s lawyer reads.
Routh, who attempted to shoot Trump while he was at one of his Florida golf courses, was found guilty of attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, possessing a firearm to carry out a violent crime, assaulting a federal officer, felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
Ahead of the trial, Routh fired his court-appointed attorneys, instead opting to represent himself and alleging he did not trust the appointed attorneys to represent him well. He also made multiple bizarre filings to the court, including offering himself up for a prisoner swap for one of the adversaries of the United States. In another unusual filing, Routh suggested a round of golf between him and Trump, saying that if Trump won, “he can execute me,” but if he won, he would get Trump’s job as president.
The two-week trial last year included several bizarre moments, including Cannon cutting off Routh’s rambling opening statement for going off-topic, and him only calling three witnesses and barely using any of his time to argue his case. The jury reached a guilty verdict in a matter of hours.
RYAN ROUTH TRIED TO STAB HIMSELF AFTER BEING FOUND GUILTY FOR ATTEMPTING TO ASSASSINATE TRUMP
After the jury announced its verdict, Routh attempted to stab himself in the neck with a pen, but was stopped by law enforcement.
Routh’s attempted assassination of Trump in September 2024 was one of two high-profile attempts to take the now-president’s life during the 2024 campaign. At a July rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, Trump was shot in the ear by a would-be assassin, narrowly avoiding death. The Butler assassination attempt resulted in the death of one of the rally attendees, Corey Comperatore.
