Florida: Ryan Wesley Routh[a][4] (born February 18, 1966) is an American man who allegedly attempted to assassinate the 45th and 47th U.S. President Donald Trump.

On September 15, 2024, a Secret Service agent shot at least four rounds at Routh, who was hiding with an SKS-style rifle[5] in shrubbery at the Trump International Golf Club, West Palm Beach.

He was allegedly pointing his weapon through the fence line of the golf course, 300–500 yards away from Trump, who was moving between holes five and six alongside Republican megadonor and real estate investor Steve Witkoff.

[21] On April 2, 1991, Routh fought and chased a suspected rapist, who was also wanted for a string of burglaries, assaults, and robberies in both Greensboro and out-of-state in New York, around an office building.

[22] For confronting the suspect, Routh was honored as a "super citizen" and awarded a "Law Enforcement Oscar" a few months after the chase by the Greensboro chapter of the International Union of Police Associations.

[23] On December 15–16, 2002, Routh was convicted of possessing a firearm; resisting, delaying and obstructing a law enforcement officer and driving with license revoked after a three-hour stand-off with police.

He was pulled over while driving, and during the traffic stop he put his hand on a gun and then drove to a nearby roofing business, where he barricaded himself inside.

[26] Prior to his alleged attempt to assassinate Trump, Routh had over a hundred criminal charges filed against him throughout his life.

[30] Routh claimed on his social media accounts, as well as in 2022 interviews with The New York Times, Newsweek Romania, and Der Tagesspiegel to have made efforts to recruit foreign soldiers for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

[33] Routh said in a 2022 interview with a Romanian reporter in Kyiv that he flew to Ukraine to join the army in the months after Russia's full-scale invasion, but learned that he was "not an ideal candidate" for the battlefield because he was in his mid-50s with no military experience.

He refused repeatedly to understand basic army policy", further adding "There was delusions of grandeur and [he was] very disconnected from reality".

[49] Routh was charged on September 24 with attempted assassination of a presidential candidate, as well as "assaulting a federal officer" and "possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

[53] On September 23, the Department of Justice publicized a note written by Routh several months prior to his arrest in which he described an "assassination attempt" and offered a bounty for the killing of Donald Trump.

In the letter, Routh reportedly stated, "This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I failed you," and went on to offer "$150,000 to whomever can complete the job.

"[55] Authorities believe that this letter may have been an indication of Routh's foreshadowing of his later actions as well as his acknowledgment of failure in carrying out the alleged plot.

[56] Former US Attorney General William Barr criticized the Department of Justice for publicizing the note, because it told people to ‘finish the job’ of killing Trump with a cash award, which could lead to potential future assassination attempts and plots.

[57] On the same day, FBI agents found documents that contained a handwritten list of venues where Trump had appeared or was expected to be present, dated in August through October.

[63] Routh would also compare himself to Thomas Matthew Crooks, the perpetrator of Trump's previous assassination attempt in Pennsylvania, claiming they were both “ready to die for freedom and democracy."

[69] In a self-published e-book (Ukraine's Unwinnable War: The Fatal Flaw of Democracy, World Abandonment and the Global Citizen-Taiwan, Afghanistan, North Korea and the end [sic] of Humanity)[47] in 2023, he wrote about his stated previous support for Trump by stating, "I am man enough to say that I misjudged and made a terrible mistake".

In 2024, he expressed concern over democracy in a post tagging Biden, and telling him his campaign slogan should be "Keep America Democratic and Free".

[71] In 2020, he also supported Tulsi Gabbard, calling for an executive order on police misconduct[72] and he made several small donations to the Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue, contributing 19 times in 2019 and 2020 with amounts ranging from $1 to $25, as recorded by the Federal Election Commission.

[18][20] Routh has stated his support for Taiwan, and in his self-published text discussed its political status and called for international intervention to protect the island from China.