EXCLUSIVE: The House Judiciary Committee is investigating the Justice Department after it released the manifesto of the suspect charged with the attempted assassination of former President Trump, warning that the move could inspire potential copycat offenders and “cause additional harm to occur.”
Fox News Digital obtained a letter House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, sent to Attorney General Merrick Garland Wednesday, after the Justice Department released Ryan Routh’s letter, or manifesto, outlining his plans to assassinate Trump.
Routh was arrested after a Secret Service agent saw his rifle poking through a chain-link fence at Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, Florida, while the former president was golfing.
The DOJ, in a court filing this week, released Routh’s letter “to the world,” in which he explained his effort was “an assassination attempt on Donald Trump.” Routh offered $150,000 to someone who could “complete the job” if he failed.
The letter was released as evidence in a detention memo by the Justice Department in an effort to ensure Routh’s detention.
The House Judiciary Committee is investigating the Justice Department after it released the manifesto of the suspect charged with the attempted assassination of former President Trump. (Getty Images)
“During your tenure as Attorney General, the Department has generally refused to release details about so-called ‘manifestos’ written by the perpetrators of high-profile crimes,” Jordan wrote. “Yet, earlier this week, in a public court filing, the Department released a letter in which the man who sought to assassinate President Donald J. Trump in Florida on September 15, 2024, offered a $150,000 bounty on President Trump.”
Jordan warned that the decision to release that manifesto “seems to contravene the Department’s stated policy that ‘public access to legacy tokens,’ more commonly known as manifestos, ‘will contribute to further attacks’ by ‘spark[ing] incredibly intense interest and study’ by potential copycat offenders and providing a blueprint for future attackers.”
TRUMP ASSASSINATION SUSPECT WROTE CHILLING LETTER MONTHS BEFORE GOLF COURSE PLOT
“The Department’s decision to broadcast the attempted assassin’s bounty on President Trump – at the same time that the Department is aggressively and unconstitutionally prosecuting President Trump – raises significant concern that the Department could cause additional harm to occur,” Jordan wrote.
Rep. Jim Jordan walks through the Longworth House Office Building in Washington, D.C. (Anna Rose Layden/Getty Images)
Jordan is now requesting the Justice Department share all documents and communications referring to the FBI’s May 2023 “Protection of Legacy Tokens” memo, and all records referring or relating to the release of the would-be assassin’s letter to “The World.”
Jordan demanded those records by Oct. 9 at 5 p.m.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Routh, 58, has been charged by the Justice Department with attempted assassination of Trump, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Routh has also been charged federally with possessing a gun with a scratched-out number and with possessing a gun illegally as a felon, though more serious charges are likely pending. The weapon had a round in the chamber and was loaded with a total of 11 rounds.
Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Routh is the second would-be assassin who attempted to take Trump’s life this year.
“The Justice Department is committed to using the full force of our authorities to thoroughly investigate every lead and ensure accountability into this matter,” Garland said Wednesday. “Our nation has now experienced two assassination attempts against the former president in just the last three months.”
Garland added: “That is abhorrent.”
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Trump was hit in the ear by a bullet fired by Thomas Crooks, who was killed by federal agents after he opened fire at the former president’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13.
Brooke Singman is a political correspondent and reporter for Fox News Digital, Fox News Channel and FOX Business.
