(CN) — The man accused of trying to assassinate former President Donald Trump at his Florida golf course last month asked the federal judge assigned to his case on Thursday to recuse herself because of her history with the former president.
Ryan Routh, 58, said that U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon of the Southern District of Florida should not preside over the case because Trump appointed her to the bench in 2020 and has “repeatedly praised” her for her rulings in his classified documents case, which she controversially dismissed earlier this year.
“Your Honor thus owes her lifetime appointment to the alleged victim in this criminal case,” Routh said in an 11-page recusal motion filed Thursday.
Routh was arrested in West Palm Beach in September after authorities say he camped outside Trump’s golf course with food and a rifle for nearly 12 hours. He was charged with five criminal counts, including attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate and gun charges.
It’s an unprecedented case, Routh claimed, given Cannon’s “relationship to the alleged victim.”
“The unprecedented nature of this scenario militates in favor of recusal,” Routh said. “Indeed, it is unclear whether this scenario — i.e., a federal judge presiding over a criminal case where the very president who appointed her is the alleged victim of a violent crime — has ever occurred in the history of this country.”
Routh added that, should Trump be elected president again, he would be in the position to nominate Cannon to a higher court. That includes the U.S. Supreme Court, Routh said.
Facing life in prison if convicted, Routh noted his discomfort with his case being in the hands of Cannon, whose handling of Trump’s classified documents indictment has at least given the appearance of her being partial towards the former president, Routh said.
Trump repeatedly lauded Cannon after she dismissed the case in July, saying during his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention that she was a “highly respected” judge for dropping the “fake documents case” against him.
“By repeatedly and publicly praising this court by name for its rulings in his case, Mr. Trump has arguably bolstered the perception that the court is partial in his favor,” Routh claimed. “In the mind of the public, this prospect of a judicial promotion could arguably affect this court’s ability to be impartial in this case, where Mr. Trump is the alleged victim and has an interest in the outcome.”
Still, Routh was careful to specify that he assumes that Cannon has “no actual bias,” only that her history with Trump threatens her “requisite appearance of impartiality.”
Cannon’s rulings in the classified documents case, which scrutinized Trump’s handling of federal documents after his presidency, have raised eyebrows in the legal community. Routh acknowledged as much in his recusal bid.
“This court issued some rulings that were favorable to Mr. Trump,” Routh said. “One of the rulings was stayed and then vacated on appeal. Other rulings were characterized by some in the media as unorthodox. And, in July, this court dismissed the criminal case against Mr. Trump in its entirety.”
In 2022, Cannon kneecapped the federal probe against Trump by requiring prosecutors to run seized documents through a third party before using them in the case — that ruling was quickly overturned in the 11th Circuit, however.
Cannon also delayed the start of trial indefinitely earlier this year; the case was initially slated to begin in May.
Now, her dismissal of the indictment lands in the 11th Circuit on appeal, where special prosecutor Jack Smith is arguing that Cannon overlooked “binding Supreme Court precedent” when she elected to drop the case. Cannon’s justification for dismissal was that Smith, who brought the case against Trump, was unlawfully appointed.
Routh’s Thursday motion indicates that federal prosecutors are taking his recusal request “under advisement.”