By james art WASHINGTON — Florida is suing the Justice Department to stop federal authorities from blocking the state’s investigation into the second assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
On Wednesday, Republican state Attorney General Ashley Moody filed a complaint against Attorney General Merrick Garland after the Justice Department told Florida to temporarily halt the investigation until the federal investigation is complete. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis said earlier that Florida would file state charges against suspect Ryan Root, who already faces federal charges.
Florida authorities were told not to interview witnesses and could only cooperate with the federal investigation, the lawsuit said. Justice Department officials cited federal law that says an assassination attempt on a political candidate must be investigated by the FBI and that state jurisdiction is suspended if the federal government intervenes, according to the complaint.
Florida says it is suing to “protect its sovereign interest in investigating violations of state law, as delay could affect the outcome of any prosecution.”
The Justice Department declined to comment. Markenzie LaPointe, the top federal prosecutor for the Southern District of Florida, noted in a letter to Moody that was filed in court that the law does not prevent Florida from prosecuting after the federal case is over. And the law “does not in any way prevent the sharing of federal evidence with state authorities after the federal matter is closed,” he wrote.
DeSantis announced the state investigation two days after the Sept. 15 incident at Trump’s West Palm Beach golf club. Authorities earlier said the assassination attempt was foiled when a member of Trump’s Secret Service spotted a rifle barrel sticking through the golf course’s fence line. The agent fired in the direction of the suspect, who fled and was arrested in a neighboring county.
Raut pleaded not guilty to all federal charges. Raut did not fire any rounds and did not have Trump in his sights, officials said earlier.
Prosecutors said Root wrote about his plans to kill Trump in a handwritten note months before his arrest. Ruth’s note called his actions a failed “assassination attempt on Donald Trump” and offered $150,000 for anyone who could “finish the job.” That note was in a box that Root apparently left at the home of an unidentified witness months before his arrest.
The incident came two months after Trump was shot and wounded in the ear in an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. The Secret Service acknowledged lapses that led to that shooting, but said security worked as it should have to thwart the attempted attack in Florida.