Actions

Ryan Routh attempts to stab himself after being found guilty of trying to assassinate Trump

Routh's daughter began screaming in courtroom, 'Dad I love you, don't do anything. I'll get you out'

The man who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump at a golf course near West Palm Beach last year tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen shortly after being found guilty of all counts on Tuesday.

Ryan Routh tries to stab self with pen after guilty verdict

Ryan Routh tries to stab himself with a pen on Sept. 23, 2025, after he was found guilty on all five counts of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump.

This courtroom sketch shows U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon listening to Ryan Routh during his trial where he is charged with attempting to assassinate Donald Trump last year at a golf course in South Florida, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025, in Fort Pierce, Fla.

This courtroom sketch shows U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon listening as prosecutor Christopher Browne speaks during the trial of Ryan Routh, at left, who is charged with attempting to assassinate Donald Trump last year at a golf course in South Florida, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025, in Fort Pierce, Fla.

By: David Fischer, AP and Ethan Stein, WPTV

Posted

and last updated

FORT PIERCE, Fla. — The man who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump at a golf course near West Palm Beach last year tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen shortly after being found guilty of all counts on Tuesday.

Officers quickly swarmed him and dragged him out of the courthouse.

Ryan Routh tries to stab self with pen after guilty verdict

The jury of five men and seven women found Ryan Routh guilty on all counts that he was facing after two hours of deliberation.

The jurors were on their way out of the courtroom after the verdict was announced when Routh grabbed a pen off a desk and tried to stab himself in the neck.

As marshals were dragging him from the courtroom, Routh's daughter Sara Routh began screaming, "Dad I love you, don't do anything. I'll get you out. He didn't hurt anybody."

She continued screaming inside the courtroom as her father was dragged out. She said the case against him was rigged, later telling the entire court, "You're all assholes."

WATCH BELOW: 'I love you': Sara Routh chases after vehicle with father inside after guilty verdict

'I love you': Sara Routh chases after vehicle with father inside after guilty verdict

The daughter went outside the courthouse and was waiting by the guard gate for her father to be driven out and transported to prison.

A few minutes after Routh was dragged from the courtroom, he was brought back inside. He was no longer wearing a jacket and tie and was shackled. There were no signs of blood on his shirt. The judge announced Routh will be sentenced on Dec. 18 at 9:30 a.m. He faces life in prison.

Ryan Routh attempts to stab himself after being found guilty of trying to assassinate Trump

Routh's standby defense attorneys did not have a comment following the verdict.

Routh had been charged with attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, assaulting a federal officer, possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number. He had pleaded not guilty to the charges and defended himself in court.

TRUMP REACTS TO GUILTY VERDICT

Following the verdict, Trump told reporters in New York that the case was "really well handled."

"It's very important. You can’t let things like that happen. Nothing to do with me, but a president -- or even a person, you can’t allow that to happen," Trump said. "And so justice was served. But I very much appreciate the judge and jury and everybody on that."

Ryan Routh rests his case in Trump attempted assassination trial

Prosecutors said Routh spent weeks plotting to kill Trump before aiming a rifle through shrubbery as the Republican played golf on Sept. 15, 2024, at his West Palm Beach country club.

Routh told jurors in his closing argument that he didn’t intend to kill anyone that day.

"It's hard for me to believe that a crime occurred if the trigger was never pulled," Routh said. He pointed out that he could see Trump as he was on the path toward the sixth-hole green at the golf course and noted that he also could have shot a Secret Service agent who confronted him if he had intended to harm anyone.

Routh, 59, exercised his constitutional right not to testify in his own defense. He rested his case Monday morning after questioning just three witnesses — a firearms expert and two character witnesses — for a total of about three hours. In contrast, prosecutors spent seven days questioning 38 witnesses.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a post on X that the guilty verdict "illustrates the Department of Justice's commitment to punishing those who engage in political violence."

"This attempted assassination was not only an attack on our President, but an affront to our very nation," Bondi said.

Prosecution rests in Trump attempted assassination trial

"This verdict sends a clear message. An attempt to assassinate a presidential candidate is an attack on our Republic and on the rights of every citizen," Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement. "The Department of Justice will relentlessly pursue those who try to silence political voices, and no enemy, foreign or domestic, will ever silence the will of the American people."

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon signed off on Routh's request to represent himself following two hearings in July. The U.S. Supreme Court has held that criminal defendants have a right to represent themselves in court proceedings, as long as they can show a judge they are competent to waive their right to be defended by an attorney. Routh’s former defense attorneys have served as standby counsel since he took over his own defense and have been present during the trial the past two weeks.

Recounting what happened at the golf course, a Secret Service agent testified earlier in the trial 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 flee without firing a shot, the agent said.

Sniper testifies Ryan Routh used military-style tactics

Law enforcement obtained help from a witness who testified that he saw a person fleeing the area after hearing gunshots. The witness was then flown in a police helicopter to a nearby interstate where Routh was arrested, and the witness said he confirmed it was the person he had seen.

Just nine weeks earlier, Trump had survived an attempt on his life while campaigning in Butler, Pennsylvania. That gunman had fired eight shots, with one bullet grazing Trump’s ear. The gunman was then fatally shot by a Secret Service counter sniper.

Routh was a North Carolina construction worker who in recent years had moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Routh spoke out to anyone who would listen about his dangerous and sometimes violent plans to insert himself into conflicts around the world, witnesses have told The Associated Press.

In the early days of Russia's war in Ukraine, Routh tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to fight the Russians. In his native Greensboro, North Carolina, he was arrested in 2002 for eluding a traffic stop and barricading himself from officers with a fully automatic machine gun and a “weapon of mass destruction,” which turned out to be an explosive with a 10-inch fuse, police said.

In 2010, police searched a warehouse Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen items, from power tools and building supplies to kayaks and spa tubs. In both felony cases, judges gave Routh either probation or a suspended sentence.

Besides the federal charges, Routh also has pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.

More of WPTV's coverage of Trump assassination attempt below: