Judge Aileen Cannon rejected defendant Ryan Routh’s request Tuesday that she remove herself from a case in which he faces charges of attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump.
Cannon, a Trump appointee whom the former president frequently praises, said the factors Routh cited to support his argument for Cannon’s recusal had no bearing on her ability to be impartial in his case.
“Defendant cites a series of factors which he believes, when viewed in their totality, create an appearance of partiality,” Cannon wrote in an order. “None warrants recusal, whether examined individually or together.”
Routh, who could face life in prison if convicted, had argued that Cannon presiding over his case created an “appearance” of bias because she owes her federal judgeship to Trump and because, when Cannon presided over the former president’s classified documents case, she ruled in his favor by tossing out the charges. Routh also speculated that Cannon had an incentive to rule in Trump’s favor because Trump would have the power to appoint her to a higher federal position if he were to win the election.
Cannon shot down these reasons, saying all of Routh’s arguments were speculative.
“I have no control over what private citizens, members of the media, or public officials or candidates elect to say about me or my judicial rulings,” Cannon said. “Nor am I concerned about the political consequences of my rulings.”
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The judge added that she had never spoken to or met Trump outside of his required appearances in court.
Cannon has been heavily scrutinized by Trump’s critics over the past year for handing down rulings in his classified documents case that were unconventional, slow to arrive, or favorable to him. Quashing any notion that her assignment to Routh’s case, in which Trump is the victim, was more than a coincidence, the judge assured Routh that she was selected for the case randomly.
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“This case, like the prior cited cases involving former President Trump, were randomly assigned to me through the Clerk’s random case assignment system. Period,” Cannon said. “I will not be guided by highly inaccurate, uninformed, or speculative opinions to the contrary.”
Routh is facing five charges stemming from his alleged attempt to kill Trump last month while the former president was golfing at Trump International Golf Club in Florida. Authorities said they found Routh staking out with a loaded gun pointed at the course, but the Secret Service intercepted him before he could fire any shots.