Lost in all the news coverage of the upcoming VP debate and Iran raining down missiles on Israel there was other news that went largely unnoticed. One rather startling one was that Trump’s would be Florida assassin want to court and formally pleaded Not Guilty to the charges for his clumsy (and thankfully failed) attempt to shoot Trump on that golf course down in Florida. More importantly at that same court appearance his trial date was set. For November 18, 2024!
The case wound up in the hands of none other than Trump’s best legal protector he’s had in his distinctly despicable life of avoiding accountability and Justice. Federal Judge Aileen Cannon, appointed by Trump and approved by Mitch McConnell’s Senate on Trump’s way out the door four years ago. With Trump’s National Security case regarding classified documents and information Cannon slowed things down to a pace where a snail would look like Secretariat winning the Belmont. With would be assassin Ryan Routh Judge Cannon is trying to fly faster than a rocket!
September 15 when Routh did his thing wasn’t that long ago. There were charges he could be arrested and detained for BUT it’s worth remembering he never got off a single shot. In fact he never came close to even seeing the former Prez. A Secret Service agent who was part of a team scouting ahead of Trump’s advance around the course saw a rifle barrel sticking through the fence. When shots were fired at him Routh abandoned his rifle and gear and ran for his vehicle. He got away but it didn’t take long to arrest him. That he intended to try and shoot Trump seems obvious. However assumptions aren’t evidence that meets the legal requirements to be presented in a criminal proceeding. That word “intent” can be a bear in such situations. I never doubted that given time prosecutors would be able to establish it BUT that takes time and a lot of investigative resources. To make sure any conviction will hold up on appeal, if say an incompetent judge allows things to be admitted that should not have been.
Well, in THIS matter we have Trump’s greatest protector outside certain SCOTUS “Justices.” Just as she was never, ever ever going to allow her hero to stand trial in a pretty straightforward, pared down case for illegal possession of highly classified documents and obstruction of justice (as you know she finally found an excuse to dismiss the case) there’s no way in hell she will let someone who wanted to harm her ‘Trumpy Bear’ to go unpunished. Judge Cannon clearly intends to ensure THIS case proceeds with dispatch. She wants to ‘rocket docket’ it. Unlike her Trump Bear THIS defendant is going down. As hard and as fast as she can make it happen.
Unlike Trump’s case this one IS actually going to be complex. That whole ‘intent’ thing I mentioned. Investigators have barely scratched the surface of sorting through this guy’s life and building a case that will hold up on appeal. Oh, they could take the easy win Cannon clearly wants to give them but if the case gets tossed on appeal re-trying the guy would be a tough nut to crack. So, prosecutors want to take the time needed to get it right. In fact, as this article from ABC News indicates earlier this afternoon they’ve filed a request for an ‘indefinite stay’ in the trial. (The defense of course has no objection):
In a filing Wednesday afternoon requesting Florida District Judge Aileen Cannon officially designate Routh’s case as “complex,” prosecutors revealed new details about the scope of evidence they’ve amassed as they try to further gain insight into Routh’s actions leading up to his suspected attempt to kill Trump.
“Over the past two weeks, the United States has interviewed hundreds of witnesses,” prosecutors said in the filing. “It has also executed 13 search warrants in Florida, Hawaii, and North Carolina, and seized hundreds of items of evidence, including multiple electronic devices.”
The linked article also notes over a hundred subpoenas are outstanding. Not to mention thousands of hours of video and other electronic evidence – some FOUR terabytes of information. In addition to all that there are ballistics tests in the works with the FBI and multiple expert witnesses will have to be prepared before any trial can, or at least should take place. It all adds up to this it is in fact a complex case and to ensure a solid conviction no one should be in a hurry for it to go to trial, least of all the presiding judge.
Except we are talking about a specific judge who is as protective of her Trumpy Bear as a momma bear is of her cubs. It will be interesting to see if Cannon agrees to a delay. Much as she might want to give her Trumpy Bear a Christmas present of his would be killer locked up for life (if not on death row) even she might realize she’ll have to make a show of being “fair.” I suspect, much as she will hate doing, so she’ll agree to a delay. The question is for how long. Out in Vegas the odds makers will make a killing taking bets!
I suspect strongly that with this idiot judge, the closest to justice this defendant will get is by providing a parody of it.
If ever there was a case to grant a change in venue, this one screams it. It isn’t even that I think this yahoo should go free, far from it, but having a crackpot “judge” who does everything in her rather limited mind to save the orange criminal (and when is the docs case going to be sent to a REAL judge btw?) from every crime he has committed, it stands to reason this poor fucker is toast. I cannot think of a more unfit judge to oversee this case than the see you next tuesday cannon.
So, apparently no one in a position of authority cares or will take action on the obvious bias that she displays. What a nightmare our supposed justice system is! I always knew it was bad for poor people and POC’s, but this is beyond the pale and out here for all to see.
he might very well be declared insane and unfit to stand trial. he should certainly be examined.
how can there be ballistics evidence if he didn’t fire his weapon? or did he shoot at the Secret Service?
I’m not in favor of it in any case, especially for any possible assassination case, but Florida is a stand your ground state. He never shot anyone, never even fired the gun, he has the right to have a gun, he has the right to defend himself. Why is this even being prosecuted? He literally did nothing wrong according to the law of Florida. Trayvon Martin was killed over a can of soda and some skittles legally in Florida.
Because it is not a State case, it is a Federal case.