A U.S. magistrate judge expressed deep concern on Monday regarding the “legally deficient” jail conditions facing Cole Allen, the man accused of a failed assassination attempt on Donald Trump.
During a court hearing in Washington, D.C., Judge Zia Faruqui offered a personal apology to the 31-year-old suspect, emphasizing that pre-trial detention must maintain basic human decency and cannot be used as a form of punishment, regardless of the severity of the charges.
Allen, a California resident with no prior criminal record, is charged with attempted assassination and firearms offenses following a late April incident at a high-profile press gala. While he remains in custody after his defense team declined to contest his detention, his attorneys raised alarms over his treatment at the local jail.
They reported that Allen was placed on suicide watch despite medical evaluations showing no such tendencies, confined to a padded cell for 23 hours a day, and initially denied access to a Bible. Although the suicide watch has since been lifted, Allen remains in restrictive housing.
Read more about this topic: Who is Cole Allen? The teacher behind Trump’s assassination attempt (with videos)
The judge found the disparity in treatment between Allen and other high-profile detainees particularly troubling. Reuters reported that “Faruqui compared Allen’s treatment with that of people who took part in the 6 January 2021, attack on the US Capitol,” noting that those defendants were often granted more favorable conditions despite facing charges for comparable conduct.
Faruqui remarked that he was both fascinated and disturbed by the situation, especially given that many of those previously detained in the same facility were eventually pardoned by Trump himself.
Prosecutor Jocelyn Ballantine argued that Allen’s own statements to the FBI suggested he did not expect to survive the alleged attack, which may have influenced the initial decision to implement suicide protocols.
However, Judge Faruqui remained firm that the current level of isolation and restriction was insufficient and inappropriate for the legal standards of the district. To address these concerns, the judge has ordered legal counsel for the jail to provide a definitive update by Tuesday morning regarding the specific terms of Allen’s future confinement.
