FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Sara Routh says she hasn’t spoken to her father since his conviction and the apparent attempted suicide in the courtroom.
“I have no idea where he is right now,” said Routh. “I don't know what he's going through, and that's the hardest part, not being able to speak with him.”
WATCH BELOW: WPTV's Michael Hoffman speaks with Sara Routh in an exclusive interview
“He's my best friend,” Sara said through tears, lamenting over her father’s conviction.
“I don't think the truth has been out there,” she told WPTV’s Michael Hoffman in an exclusive interview.
“What is the truth?” asked Hoffman.
“The truth is my dad does not deserve this,” said Routh.
“I know he was just trying to just get the point across that it wasn’t… Trump was not the right person to be elected and he wasn't trying to kill anybody.”
On Tuesday, Ryan Routh was convicted on five federal counts, including attempting to assassinate then-candidate Trump. He even tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen when the conviction was read.
Routh represented himself in court. His daughter explained why.
“We're not rich, we don't have funds, we don't have the means to hire a private attorney,” she said. “He felt like he was back against the wall, and he felt like he was the only one that could get his message across. He has no law education, no background, not even Law Library to, like reference to or anything.”
Despite the conviction, she insists the fight isn’t over, as she makes a plea for help.
“I will appeal,” said Routh. “I am looking for any and everybody that is willing to stand behind me and my father, to find a way to appeal this case.”
“We figured there'd be a lot more support,” she added.
Former Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg told Hoffman there could be grounds for an appeal.
“It is legitimate grounds for appeal that the judge should never have allowed Ryan Routh to represent himself,” said Aronberg.
"I would say that that has a greater chance of succeeding on appeal than he ever had in gaining an acquittal in this case.”
“I still think it's an uphill climb for Routh to win on appeal,” Aronberg added.
“I think he's going to end up dying in prison. I think he'll get life in prison and he’s done, but there's always that chance that, because he is so erratic, because he clearly had no idea of what he was doing as his own lawyer, that he could claim there was a Sixth Amendment violation of his right to a fair trial, even though he was the one who made the decision from the beginning.”
“Our family is going through a lot,” Sara said.
“I am open to talk to anybody willing to help us.”
Routh will be sentenced on December 18th, court documents say his deadline for appeal comes within two weeks of his sentencing.
