Ryan Routh, who is accused of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump at one of his golf courses last year, wishes to represent himself and dismiss his public defenders. He informed a federal judge on Thursday that he is not interested in appointing new attorneys before his trial.

“No. I will represent myself,” Routh, 59, told U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, according to The Associated Press.

According to the AP, Judge Cannon closed the courtroom to both reporters and the public to address attorney-client privilege matters. This follows Routh’s motion on Tuesday requesting a sealed hearing to dismiss his current legal counsel.

The document says prosecutors would let the judge determine the “appropriateness” of holding a hearing to terminate Routh’s representation, so long as it did not delay his trial schedule. Thursday’s hearing was slated to continue into the afternoon.

Cannon is now tasked with weighing whether Routh is competent enough to waive his right to be defended by an attorney, with his trial set to begin in September.

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In addition to trying to kill Trump, Routh is also accused of possessing a firearm while a convicted felon and for possessing a gun with an “obliterated serial number,” offenses punishable by up to 15 years and 5 years respectively upon conviction. The Department of Justice says that two people helped illegally obtain a weapon “on his behalf,” specifically the SKS rifle that he allegedly brought to Trump International Golf Club, according to prosecutors.

Trump’s DOJ filed a motion this week asking Cannon to admit into evidence messages authored by Routh’s former employee Tina Cooper, who pleaded guilty on Monday in North Carolina for conspiring with Routh to help get his hands on the weapons. Text messages show how he allegedly asked her to “go shopping for me” before the September 2024 assassination attempt.

In her plea agreement, Cooper admitted that she knew Routh had previously been convicted of a felony and was prohibited from possessing firearms.

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Prosecutors say Cooper was also assisted by Ronnie Oxendine, who had crossed paths with Routh professionally over the years, and that Oxendine was the one who actually obtained the gun and gave it to Routh on Cooper’s behalf. Oxendine pleaded guilty on June 10 to being in possession of an unregistered firearm.

“Between July and August 2024, the defendant [Routh] enlisted his longtime employee, Cooper, to obtain firearms for him,” the Tuesday motion says.

“Cooper agreed and conspired with the defendant and her current boss, Ronnie Jay Oxendine, to sell and dispose of a firearm to a prohibited person they both knew (Routh),” according to prosecutors. “Oxendine sold the SKS firearm to Routh at the request of Cooper. Routh told Oxendine (in Cooper’s presence) that he would remove the serial number from the gun so it could not be traced to Oxendine. Routh paid $350 to Oxendine for the rifle. And he paid $100 to Cooper for arranging the deal.”