Suspect in Trump assassination attempt can hire expert to examine rifle

Law enforcement officials work outside the Trump International Golf Club after an apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump (Lynne Sladky/AP, File)

A suspect accused of attempting to assassinate US President Donald Trump in South Florida can hire an expert to examine the rifle recovered from the scene, but only to determine its operability, a federal judge has said.

Ryan Wesley Routh’s lawyers had asked that their expert be allowed to inspect, photograph and test the rifle in order to evaluate a government expert’s findings, as well as test it for other information that they thought was relevant.