Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody explained that the lawsuit against the Department of Justice will dispute an “overreach of federal power” amid the state’s investigation into the second assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
This comes over a month after the DOJ successfully indicted a suspect, Ryan Routh, who was armed on a golf course where Trump was playing. While Routh is facing two federal firearm charges over the matter, Moody said on Fox News’s Fox and Friends on Thursday that the DOJ is interfering with the state’s investigation.
“But at every turn, as we have moved forward with our investigation, [the Justice Department has] attempted to frustrate that, and, in fact, it came down to them stating that they were suspending state jurisdiction, which would indefinitely put our investigation on hold,” Moody said. “We don’t believe the law supports that, and so we have filed suit against the DOJ.”
While it was a Secret Service agent who spotted Routh and ran him off the golf course, he was arrested by Martin County Sheriff’s officers. Moody said the state would additionally like to charge Routh with fleeing but cannot accomplish a thorough enough investigation to charge him.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“We’ve made contact, we’ve had meetings, but, unfortunately, you know, Florida and I, as attorney general, are going to stand up for the sovereignty of this state and push back on what we believe is an overreach of federal power,” Moody said.
Routh has since pleaded not guilty to all charges, which include possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number and attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate. He is facing a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for these charges.