NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Ryan Routh was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison plus seven years following his 2024 assassination attempt against then-presidential candidate Donald Trump at his West Palm Beach golf club in Florida.
The sentencing comes after Routh was convicted last September on five federal criminal counts, including attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal officer and multiple firearms offenses.
Routh spoke in court for about 15 minutes on Wednesday, repeating topics that he mentioned during his trial, such as talking about himself as a good person and his alleged work in Ukraine trying to recruit for their army.
However, Judge Aileen Cannon eventually stopped Routh and made her sentencing, saying he is an evil person who intended to kill Trump and would have done so if it hadn’t been for a Secret Service agent who disrupted the plot.
ATTEMPTED TRUMP ASSASSIN TO LEARN SENTENCE, WITH PROSECUTORS SEEKING LIFE
Prosecutors pushed for the 59-year-old to get a life sentence, while Routh’s attorney, Martin Roth, asked the judge for 20 years in prison on top of a seven-year, mandatory sentence for one of the gun convictions.
Routh’s sentencing in Fort Pierce, Fla., had initially been scheduled for December, but U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon agreed to move the date back after Routh decided to use an attorney during the sentencing phase instead of representing himself as he did for most of the trial.
SECRET SERVICE AGENT DETAILS ‘TEXTBOOK AMBUSH,’ BIZARRE SELF-REPRESENTATION IN RYAN ROUTH TRIAL
Prosecutors said Routh spent weeks plotting to kill Trump before aiming a rifle through shrubbery as the then-Republican presidential candidate played golf on Sept. 15, 2024, at his West Palm Beach, Fla., country club.
At Routh’s trial, a Secret Service agent helping protect Trump on the golf course testified that he spotted Routh before Trump came into view. Routh aimed his rifle at the agent, who opened fire, causing Routh to drop his weapon and run away without firing a shot.
Fox News Digital’s Breanne Deppisch, Heather Lacy, Andre Tinoco and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Read the full article here