Lawyers for the man accused of killing former President Donald Trump on a Florida golf course last month have asked U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon to recuse himself from the case.
Attorneys for Ryan Routh filed a 10-page motion Thursday formally asking Cannon to step back from the criminal case because of Trump’s praise for her past statements in his favor, the fact that the former president named her a member of the federal court had appointed and because of public suspicion about how she was assigned to yet another high-profile case involving Trump.
“The unprecedented facts and circumstances of this case raise, at the very least, significant doubts as to whether this court can preside in accordance with the requisite appearance of impartiality. And ‘all doubts must be resolved in favor of recusal,'” Routh’s public defenders Kristy Militello and Renee Sihvola wrote, citing legal precedent.
Federal prosecutors have not yet issued a position on the recusal request, the defense motion said.
Before she was assigned to oversee Routh’s case, Cannon was assigned to a lawsuit Trump filed seeking special oversight of data the FBI obtained in a 2022 court-ordered search of his Mar-a home -Lago had seized. She also took charge of the subsequent criminal case. Special counsel Jack Smith filed a lawsuit against Trump last year, accusing him of hoarding classified information after his presidency and obstructing justice. In July, Cannon dismissed the case, ruling that the special counsel’s appointment was unconstitutional.
“The public may suspect that Mr. Trump’s cases were somehow deliberately referred to this Court. … That perception would irreparably harm the integrity of this court as an institution, not to mention the legal process,” Routh’s attorneys wrote, while acknowledging that they had no evidence that the assignments were anything other than arbitrary were.
Based on recent court filings, it appears that Cannon was one of about six federal judges considered for assignment to the Routh case.
However, in response to a query from POLITICO last month, the Southern District of Florida Clerk’s Office declined to disclose the number or identity of the eligible judges. “Information about which specific judges, or how many, are on a particular assignment wheel at any given time is not public information,” a court official said.
Cannon, based in Fort Pierce, has been widely criticized by legal analysts for her rulings in the previous Trump-related cases. Her decision to appoint a special captain to review documents seized from Trump’s estate was partially stayed by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals and then reversed in its entirety. Her decision to disregard the classified documents prosecuted against Trump based on arguments that Smith was unlawfully appointed is currently under appeal in the same court.
The defense’s motion argues that numerous public statements by Trump praising Cannon’s legal acumen — including a tribute he paid to her in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention — could lead the public to doubt her impartiality in the murder case . They also raise the possibility that Trump could appoint Cannon to a higher court, such as the Supreme Court, if he becomes president in November.
“In the eyes of the public, this prospect of a judicial promotion could arguably impact this Court’s ability to be impartial in this case, in which Mr. Trump is the alleged victim and has a stake in the outcome,” the wrote defense lawyers.
Judges rarely recuse solely because of the identity or partisanship of the president who appointed them. Such a practice could create chaos in the federal judiciary, as much of the chaos involves the federal government. However, Routh’s lawyers argue that this is an atypical situation, especially because of Trump’s status as a victim in a criminal case.
According to court documents, Trump was golfing in West Palm Beach on September 15 when a Secret Service agent spotted Routh crouched in the bushes with a semi-automatic rifle and fired shots in his direction. He tried to flee but was later arrested, and his lawyers have said his actions amounted to more of a publicity stunt than a serious attempt on Trump’s life.
Routh’s attorneys pleaded not guilty on his behalf on September 30 to the five charges he faces, including attempted murder of a presidential candidate and possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Federal prosecutors have requested an indefinite delay in scheduling the trial, citing the complexity of the case. Routh is being held in jail without bond until his case continues.
