As residents continue to clean up from two hurricanes, federal prosecutors in Florida are seeking a short extension of some trial deadlines in the case of a man accused of attempting to kill former President Donald Trump. requested the government.
Prosecutors asked a judge to give them an Oct. 17 deadline for initial discovery after the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the area’s Federal Bureau of Investigation offices were closed due to the storm. They requested an extension of two days.
Routh’s defense team did not object to the prosecutor’s request.
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Prosecutors accused Routh, 58, of Hawaii, of stalking Trump for a month before setting up a sniper nest near the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach.
Federal prosecutors charged Routh, who lives in Hawaii, with possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, and attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate.
Routh has pleaded not guilty.
In court, FBI agents detailed the inside of the sniper’s den, where prosecutors say he waited for hours with a scoped rifle. Photos of the nest showed two bags hanging from the fence on the sixth hole. FBI agents said the bag contained a plate that could prevent small arms fire. Between the two bags was an SKS rifle with a scope. Agents matched fingerprints on the rifle to Routh.
Prosecutors said Routh had been planning to kill the former president for months. Investigators found in Routh’s Nissan Xterra a handwritten list of dates from August, September and October 2024, as well as venues where Trump appeared or was expected to attend.
Routh also left a note. Routh, a resident of Hawaii and North Carolina who participated in North Carolina’s March 5 primary, left a note for a person federal prosecutors considered a civilian witness months before the Sept. 15 incident. Ta. The letter stated that money would be given to those who completed the task.
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The letter says: “This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump and I failed. I tried my best and gave it my all. It’s up to you to finish the job. And to those who can complete the job, 15 I’ll give you a million dollars.”
Routh’s lawyers argued it was all a publicity stunt.
U.S. Secret Service agents found a rifle sticking out of the treeline in a hole ahead of President Trump as he walked along the border. Investigators fired their rifles in the direction of Routh before witnesses told authorities Routh fled the scene in a Nissan sport-utility vehicle.
According to a criminal complaint filed in the federal case, Routh’s cell phone records show he was camped out from 1:59 a.m. to 1:31 p.m.
Authorities caught Routh on Interstate 95.
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