The gunman accused of attempting to assassinate then-presidential candidate Donald Trump as he golfed last fall has lost his latest attempt to limit the evidence against him.
A federal judge on Saturday denied Ryan Routh's motion to suppress evidence, bringing him one step closer to facing trial for a crime that could put him in prison for life.
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WATCH HEREThe issue was whether police were "unduly suggestive" with a witness who prosecutors said saw Routh running from the woods of Trump International Golf Course on Sept. 15, with the crack of gunshots from a Secret Service agent ringing in the background.
The Palm Beach Sheriff's Office flew the witness by helicopter 40 miles to the spot on Interstate 95 in Martin County where Routh had been pulled over about 40 minutes after the crime, with the goal of seeing if the witness identified the driver as the man he saw fleeing the crime scene.
And he did, "99.9 percent" sure, he said.
But the defense tried to have that identification thrown out, telling Judge Aileen Cannon it was "tainted" because Routh was in handcuffs and surrounded by police, making it obvious he was the suspect police wanted to identify.
But Cannon ruled police acted properly, quickly and carefully, telling the witness he was under no pressure to identify Routh.
The defense can still cross examine the witness to challenge the identification, but a jury will decide if that and other evidence supports a guilty verdict with a trial set to begin Sept. 8.
Routh is jailed on federal charges of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, assaulting a federal officer, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
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