A US judge has apologised to the man accused of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump, describing his treatment in a Washington DC jail as 'legally deficient'. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui expressed disturbance over conditions imposed on Cole Allen, including being placed on suicide watch, isolated from other inmates and denied a Bible.
During a court hearing on Monday, Judge Faruqui told Allen, a 31-year-old from Los Angeles, that the conditions were inappropriate for a person with no criminal history. 'Whatever you've been through, I apologise,' the judge said, adding that he had an obligation to ensure Allen was 'treated with the basic decency of a human being'.
Allen is accused of firing a shotgun during a foiled attack on Trump and senior officials at a press gala on 25 April. He has been charged with attempted assassination and firearms offences but has not yet entered a plea. Last week, he agreed to remain detained after his lawyers did not contest arguments that he posed a danger.
Prosecutor Jocelyn Ballantine said Allen told FBI agents he did not expect to survive the alleged attack. His lawyers raised concerns that he was placed on suicide watch despite showing no suicidal tendencies during a health evaluation, housed in a padded cell for 23 hours a day and denied access to a Bible. He has since been removed from suicide watch but remains in restrictive housing.
Judge Faruqui compared Allen's treatment unfavourably with that of defendants involved in the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol, many of whom were later pardoned by Trump. 'I'm fascinated and disturbed,' the judge said, noting that pre-trial detention is not supposed to be punitive. He ordered a lawyer for the jail to inform him by Tuesday morning of final decisions on Allen's confinement.
