U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon ended up cutting off the opening statement of Ryan Routh, who stands accused of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump at his Florida golf resort September 2024.

Routh, 59, has chosen to represent himself during the trial even though he has no legal education. He has pled not guilty to five charges including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate.

In the first few minutes of Routh's opening statement, he did not address the crimes he is charged with, speaking instead about topics like human evolution, global conflicts and Adolf Hitler.

Cannon interrupted him three times to remind him of proper protocol and told him not to make a “mockery of the court” before finally shutting down his statement entirely.

The evidence

When prosecutors spoke, they mentioned evidence that Routh spent weeks planning to shoot Trump.

He allegedly tracked Trump's movements "obsessively," purchased a military grade weapon, and used a dozen burner phones to aid in his plans.

Furthermore, Routh wrote a note saying he was going to kill Trump and there was eyewitness testimony of him lying in wait behind some trees with the rifle.

Cellphone data and security footage will also be used to show "beyond a reasonable doubt" that Routh is guilty, they said.

The trial

After the opening statements, the trial began. It was just as bizarre as Routh's opening.

When a Secret Service agent testified that Routh pointed the AK-style rifle at him, Routh tried to argue that he didn't have the mindset to pull the trigger.

When Tommy McGee testified that he saw Routh flee the scene after the Secret Service agent fired his pistol, Routh called him an "American hero."

He barely cross-examined the next three witnesses, which were two FBI agents who helped process Routh after his arrest and another Secret Service agent who responded to the scene of the assassination attempt.

Court then adjourned early on Thursday.

It certainly doesn't look like Routh is doing himself any favors by not having any qualified legal counsel. He's probably going to end up right where he belongs--in jail for a very long time.