Attorney for Ryan Routh Requests Testing of Firearm Linked to Alleged Assassination Attempt on Trump
The suspect in the attempted assassination appears to have opted against pursuing an insanity defense in the upcoming trial scheduled for September.
FORT PIERCE, Fla.—During a hearing on March 7, the defense team representing Ryan Routh, accused of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump during the 2024 election, expressed its desire to test the firearm discovered at Routh’s location near Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach.
Defense attorney Kristy Militello informed U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon that this test could ascertain whether the weapon was functional and capable of firing at the distance Routh was from Trump at the golf course last year.
The Department of Justice opposed the testing, which would require a defense expert to fire the weapon after it was transferred from government custody by an independent agent.
John Shipley Jr., an attorney for the DOJ, described the proposed test as “completely unprecedented”—arguing that it would be both “irregular” and “unsafe.”
He further stated that there was no factual basis to support the test.
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Within that section of the tree line, agents recovered multiple items, including an SKS-style rifle with a caliber of 7.62×39 and an obliterated serial number.
The March 7 hearing was part of an extended pre-trial process dictated by the request from the defense, and the trial is now set to commence in September 2025 instead of the previously scheduled February date.
During a December hearing, Militello suggested that Routh might consider an insanity defense, mentioning that witnesses described Routh as experiencing hallucinations and delusions and that it would take months to confer with experts regarding his mental health.
At the March 7 hearing, Militello conceded that the defense had not submitted a plea for an insanity defense within the timeframe set by the court.
It also confirmed that the government had allowed the defense to inspect the firearm and intended to produce additional discovery materials.
These materials included “photographs and law enforcement reports detailing a January 30, 2025 search of the Nissan Xterra,” which Routh is believed to have used to escape the scene.
Other items mentioned included communications from the Secret Service and law enforcement reports that summarize interviews with third parties.
The government’s brief criticized the defense’s handling of discovery.
“Nothing has been provided,” the DOJ remarked, while asserting that the defense’s discovery deadlines were “still some time away.”
It further noted that “it defies belief, however, that six months into this case, the defense has not identified a single piece of evidence they reasonably expect to use in their case-in-chief at trial.”
Labeling the defense’s discovery deadlines as “too late,” the DOJ argued that they made “it nearly impossible for the government to adhere to this court’s timetable for pre-trial motions.”
“The need for additional large hard drives for discovery highlights the extraordinary volume of terabytes of evidence in this case,” it stated.
The brief also mentioned that the defense was not obliged to disclose information protected under the Sixth Amendment right to counsel and the Fifth Amendment right to due process.
During the March 7 hearing, Militello reassured Judge Cannon that the defense was doing their “best” to navigate through the discovery, which prompted interruptions from the judge, who commented that her team was “fully capable.”
Cannon also cautioned against the ongoing disputes regarding the efforts and timing associated with discovery, reminding that the defense was operating within extended deadlines.
