The man accused of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump at his Florida golf course last month has asked the presiding judge to recuse herself to avoid the perception of a conflict of interest.
The judge in accused would-be assassin Ryan Routh’s case is Aileen Cannon, a Trump-appointed federal judge who in July dismissed a criminal case charging Trump with illegally hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
In a motion to Judge Cannon on Thursday, Routh’s attorneys argued for her recusal.
“It is unclear whether this scenario—i.e., a federal judge presiding over a criminal case where the very President who appointed her is the alleged victim of a violent crime—has ever occurred in the history of this country,” Routh’s lawyers, public defenders Kristy Militello and Renee Sihvola, said in their motion.
“The unprecedented facts and circumstances of this case, at the very least, create significant doubts about whether this court could preside consistent with the requisite appearance of impartiality,” they argued.
The Justice Department has not stated its position on whether Cannon should be the judge in Routh’s case.
Prosecutors accused Routh, 58, of Hawaii, of stalking Trump for a month before his attempted hit.
He was arrested on Sept. 15 after a Secret Service agent who was scoping the Trump International Golf Club for potential security threats saw a partially obscured man’s face, and the barrel of a semiautomatic rifle, aimed directly at him. The agent fired at Routh, who sped away before being stopped by officials in a neighboring county.
The Secret Service has said Routh did not fire any shots and never had Trump in his line of sight.
The Justice Department also said that authorities who searched his car found six cellphones, including one that showed a Google search of how to travel from Palm Beach County to Mexico.
Routh was initially charged with two federal firearms offenses. Later in September, the Justice Department announced a five-count indictment in which Routh is also charged with attempted assassination.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
