Florida authorities will launch their own criminal investigation into the alleged assassination attempt on Donald Trump, in parallel with federal investigations, state Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday. The Republican lawmaker said local prosecutors would seek to build the strongest possible indictment, possibly including a charge of attempted murder, which carries a possible life sentence, against Ryan Routh, who was arrested after the incident Sunday.
The 58-year-old American is suspected of hiding in a bush on the edge of a golf course where Donald Trump was, armed with an assault rifle, with the intention of shooting him dead. But he has so far only been charged with illegal possession of a firearm. “It is really in our interest to hold this suspect accountable.”said Ron DeSantis, who ran against Donald Trump in the Republican primary from May 2023 to January 2024. The self-proclaimed conservative has since rallied behind the billionaire’s candidacy.
“Neither in the interest of our state nor in that of our nation”
On the contrary, he argued, “It is not in the best interest of our state or our nation for these investigations to be conducted by the federal agencies involved in the prosecution of Donald Trump.”referring to the prosecutions led by Special Prosecutor Jack Smith. It is not uncommon for state authorities to conduct parallel investigations with federal law enforcement on the same facts, with the catalogue of available prosecutions sometimes being quite distinct in the two proceedings.
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