by Ian Maile
A federal judge on Monday delayed the start of the criminal case against Cole Allen, the man accused of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump during the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner last in April.
U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden approved a joint request from prosecutors and defense attorneys to pause the trial for 45 days because of the large volume of evidence in the case. Federal prosecutors said discovery will include “thousands of pages and gigabytes of data” spanning Allen’s alleged activities from California to Washington, D.C.
The events took place at the Washington Hilton during the annual WHCA dinner, at which Allen allegedly tried to assassinate the president and other high-ranking officials in the administration. Allen rushed through security, firing at a Secret Service officer, and was quickly apprehended by law enforcement.
The Secret Service agent shot in the chest was wearing a bulletproof vest at the time of the shooting and survived the attack.
Allen, who pleaded not guilty last month, faces charges of attempted assassination of the president, assaulting a federal law enforcement officer, and firearm offenses.
McFadden scheduled the next hearing for Aug. 20; they are expected to set a trial date at that time.
In February, Ryan Routh, who attempted to assassinate Trump at his Florida golf course in 2024, was sentenced to life in prison plus additional federal time after being found guilty of attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, assault of a federal law enforcement officer and multiple firearms offenses.
“Routh attempted to assassinate President Trump and thereby cast our Nation into what would have been one of its darkest periods,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg.
He also called the sentence a “resounding rejection of political violence and a clear reminder that we resolve our differences through civil discourse, democratic elections, and lawful protest, not by force.”
In 2024, Thomas Matthew Crooks attempted to assassinate Trump while at a rally in Pennsylvania. Crooks was killed by a Secret Service counter-sniper.
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Ian Maile is a reporter for Just the News. Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
