Here Are the Charges So Far Against Trump's Would-Be Assassin ('No Way He Wasn't Known to Authorities')

Doug P. | 1:50 PM on September 16, 2024

The man arrested for plotting to kill Donald Trump while he played golf has been hit so far with a pair of charges (a Biden-Harris sticker can be seen in the above photo of a truck in the suspect's driveway, which certainly would be made a bigger deal out of if the political party tables were turned).

One takeaway from the charges against the gunman so far is that criminals don't obey gun laws. Shocker:

🚨BREAKING: Ryan Routh, the would-be Trump ass*ssin, has been charged with:

1. Possession of a firearm while a convicted felon.

2. Possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. pic.twitter.com/xzAfF619G0
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) September 16, 2024

Ryan Wesley Routh — suspect police say tried to kill Former President Trump — was just in Federal court. Charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. pic.twitter.com/OwuYVXG0WJ
— Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) September 16, 2024

From the New York Post:

Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was seen wearing dark blue prison scrubs with his hands and feet shackled ahead of his appearance at the federal courthouse in West Palm Beach.
He was calm and was seen talking and smiling with assistant public defender Kristy Militello ahead of his hearing.
Routh was charged with possessing a firearm despite being a convicted felon and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
Additional charges may be filed against him as the investigation continues and prosecutors seek an indictment, prosecutors said.

Apparently Routh's no stranger to run-ins with the law.

Ryan Routh’s NC rap sheet is pages and pages long. Most recent charge was in March of 2019. There is no way he wasn’t known to authorities. None. pic.twitter.com/7M32VKw940
— 𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑜𝑖𝑠 (@chiIIum) September 16, 2024

This is pretty much SOP

These are just the easiest, most immediate charges he could be hit with that will keep him held in custody

Any Assassination related charges will need a much more in-depth investigation before specific charges can be filed https://t.co/Aqa2Z8dhOM
— LEO Mike 🇺🇸👮🏼‍♂️🚔 (@mpfive0) September 16, 2024

Meanwhile, Dems like Kamala Harris have talked about "mandatory gun buybacks" (aka confiscation) which would affect only the law abiding while people like this will still find ways to access firearms:

This is impossible it was illegal for him to have a gun. So there is no way he had a gun. https://t.co/62lvxlO8pP
— PATRICKHENRY (@PATRICKHENRY97) September 16, 2024

And yet the "we need more gun laws" crowd will still keep trying to come up with something.