A foreign national who mailed ricin to then-President Donald Trump and eight Texas law enforcement officials will spend nearly 22 years in federal prison, the Daily Caller reported. Pascale Cecile Veronique Ferrier, who holds both French and Canadian citizenship, was sentenced Thursday.
In September 2020, Ferrier sent envelopes containing the poison and letters promising harm to Trump and the officials. She made the poison in her Quebec home using castor beans.
After sending the letters from Canada, Ferrier crossed the border into the U.S. in a vehicle packed with ammunition and weapons. She was stopped by border patrol agents who arrested her on the spot.
"I consider myself to be an activist, not a terrorist," Ferrier said in court. "Activists are constructive; terrorists are destructive," she falsely claimed.
"The only regret I have is that it didn’t work and that I couldn’t stop Trump," Ferrier added. She addressed Trump as the "Ugly Tyrant Clown" in her unhinged letters.
"If it doesn’t work, I’ll find better recipe for another poison, or I might use my gun when I’ll be able to come. Enjoy! FREE REBEL SPIRIT," she wrote in her letters to him.
Ferrier's reason for attempting to poison Texas law enforcement officials stems from a 2019 incident. She was briefly held in prison in the Lone Star State after she disobeyed orders to leave a park that was closing, The Hill reported.
In court, Ferrier rambled about being a "peacefully and genuinely kind person" that only lashes out at injustices and "stupid rules" imposed by officials on a power trip. She did not say she was sorry for what she had done but said she would rather "find peaceful means" to affect change.
Nevertheless, the 56-year-old pleaded guilty to violating biological weapons prohibitions. The plea deal stipulates that she will be expelled from the U.S. after serving her 262-month sentence and remain on supervised release should she reenter the United States.
U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich said there was a "real disconnect" between Ferreir's behavior in prison and her criminal activity. She is a middle-aged grandmother who has pursued another degree, the poison and threats against others notwithstanding.
Friederich challenged Ferrier's claim of "activism" because it was carried out as an attempt to murder and intimidate. "That isn’t really activism," the judge told her.
"I hope you have no desire to continue on this path," Friederich added. Prosecutor Michael Friedman was adamant that locking Ferrier away was "appropriately harsh punishment" for such serious crimes.
"There is absolutely no place for politically motivated violence in the United States of America," the prosecutor said. "There is no excuse for threatening public officials or targeting our public servants."
Hatred for Trump made many otherwise normal people crack up. Perhaps that's what happened to Ferrier, but she is clearly dangerous and should spend the rest of her life behind bars which will hopefully be the case with this sentence.
