Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Sunday that his state will conduct a separate investigation into how a second gunman was able to get within 500 yards of former President Trump.
The former president was playing a round at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, when the U.S. Secret Service opened fire on Ryan Wesley Routh, who was allegedly armed with a rifle.
Authorities said Routh had a GoPro camera and two backpacks, and allegedly shoved the muzzle of his rifle through a chain-linked fence about 300 to 500 yards away from the former president.
The agents fired at Routh after they saw him raising the weapon, Fox News’ Lucas Tomlinson confirmed. Routh then fled in a black Nissan but was apprehended quickly, authorities said.
Trump was on the fifth hole of his course when the shots rang out, prompting his protective detail to swarm him and usher him to the safety of the clubhouse. It marks the second assassination attempt on Trump in just two months.
As more information comes out about what is being investigated as an attempted assassination on Trump’s life, DeSantis announced Florida will conduct its own investigation to find out what happened at Trump International Golf Club.
“The people deserve the truth about the would-be assassin and how he was able to get within 500 yards of the former president and current GOP nominee,” DeSantis said in a post on X.
This is the second time in 64 days that a gunman has been able to get within close proximity of the president with a gun.
Here’s what we know about the assassination attempt on Trump in Florida:
- Former President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach on Sept. 15, 2024.
- Trump sent out a statement to supporters soon after to report that he was “SAFE AND WELL.”
- The suspect — identified as Ryan Routh, 58, of Hawaii — was able to get within 300 to 500 yards of Trump at a chain link fence on the edge of the course, where he had an AK-47 and a GoPro camera set up, apparently to record the planned shooting.
- Routh has a history of supporting progressive causes online and has made 19 donations to Democratic candidates since 2019.
- A Secret Service agent spotted and opened fire on Routh as he put his gun through the fence. The suspect fled and was arrested on I-95 a short time later.
- According to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, Trump’s security detail was lighter because he isn’t a sitting president — despite the previous attempt on his life in July.
On July 13, Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, from the roof of a building nearly 150 yards away from the stage.
Crooks fired off eight rounds, one of which grazed Trump’s ear. A slight movement to the left or right may have resulted in serious brain damage or even possible death.
The investigation into how Crooks was able to gain access to the top of a building that was not manned, yet was so close to Trump, is being conducted by a group of bipartisan lawmakers, including Mike Kelly, R-Pa., and Jason Crow, D-Colo.
The two lawmakers released a statement Sunday, saying they requested a briefing with the U.S. Secret Service about the events leading up to another attempted assassination on Trump, this time in West Palm Beach.
“We are thankful that the former President was not harmed but remain deeply concerned about political violence and condemn it in all of its forms,” the two wrote.
