Did federal prosecutors release an alleged assassin's bounty letter targeting Donald Trump because they "all want him dead"? No, that's not true: A handwritten letter allegedly by accused gunman Ryan Routh offering $150,000 to "whomever can complete the job" was included as part of the government's motion to keep him behind bars until trial. Other prosecutors say it's standard procedure to offer such evidence to a judge considering bond.
The claim appeared in a post on X (archived here) by Breanna Morello on September 23, 2024. Morello hosts a nightly conservative commentary show on X and Rumble. Her post opened:
Ryan Routh failed to assassinate President Donald Trump. Routh is now offering a $150,000 bounty for whomever kills President Trump. The DOJ released the letter. Why would the DOJ publicly release this letter? I have an idea--they're all in on it. They all want him dead. ...
Routh was arrested on September 15, 2024, after a Secret Service agent spotted a gun along the fence line of the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.
On September 23, 2024, prosecutors with the U.S. attorney's office in the Southern District of Florida submitted a "written factual proffer" (archived here) to support their argument that Routh should remain in federal custody until trial. Along with several photos of the weapons found at the scene, the document also included a letter allegedly written by Routh. It was found in a box prosecutors said Routh left with a friend months earlier. A screenshot of the letter is below:
(Source: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25171981-de-14-written-factual-proffer-in-support-of-pretrial-detention screenshot Mon Sep 23 17:39:00 2024 UTC)
Addressed to "The World," the letter explained "this was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I failed you," and offered "$150,000 to whomever can complete the job."
On September 24, 2024, U.S. Magistrate Judge Ryon M. McCabe agreed with the government and ordered Routh to remain in custody. In his order, the judge cited the assassination letter as one of the reasons for his decision.
Lead Stories reached out to former U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine of the Northern Georgia Judicial Circuit to ask about the use of such evidence in a bond hearing.
Now in private practice, he responded by phone on September 25, 2024.
"The magistrate judge is the first judicial officer to make a bond determination," Erskine explained. "That letter allows you to explain why he's a danger to the community by using the defendant's own words."
Erskine also pointed out that because the magistrate's decision can be appealed, prosecutors strive to include their best evidence as soon as possible.
Additional Lead Stories fact checks of claims about Ryan Routh can be found here. Other Lead Stories fact checks about the 2024 presidential election can be found here.
