Sara Jane Moore tries to make history (in a bad way)
On this day September 22nd in 1975, 35 years ago today, Sara Jane Moore attempted to assassinate President Gerald Ford outside the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. It was the second attempt on Ford's life in 17 days. On the morning of September 5th, Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme pointed a pistol at Ford at Sacremento's Capitol Park.
Interestingly enough, Moore had been picked up by San Francisco police on an illegal handgun charge the day before the Ford incident, but was released following her arrest. The police confiscated her .44 caliber pistol and 113 rounds of pistol ammunition.
On the day of the assassination attempt, Moore was about 40 feet away from President Ford when she fired a single shot at him with a different pistol, a .38 caliber revolver. She was standing in the crowd across the street from the St. Francis Hotel. She was using a gun she bought in haste that same morning and did not know the sight was off by six inches. When she fired at Ford, her bullet just missed his head by just that much. FBI case agent, Richard Vitamanti, measured the location the next day. After she fired her first shot and realized she had missed, she raised her arm again, but Oliver Sipple, a Marine, dove towards her, knocking her arm the second time, and saving President Ford's life.
Judge Samuel Conti, in the course of sentencing Moore, said that Moore would have killed President Ford had she had her own gun, and it was only "because her gun was faulty," that saved the president's life.
Oliver Sipple said at the time: "I saw it [her gun] pointed out there and I grabbed for it. I lunged and grabbed the woman's arm and the gun went off." The second shot which Moore fired ricocheted off the entrance to the hotel and slightly injured a bystander.
Moore pled guilty to attempted assassination and was sentenced to life in prison.At her sentencing hearing she said "Am I sorry I tried? Yes and no. Yes, because it accomplished little except to throw away the rest of my life. And, no, I'm not sorry I tried, because at the time it seemed a correct expression of my anger."
In 1979, Moore escaped from the Alderson Federal Prison Camp in Alderson, West Virginia, but was recaptured only hours later. After her return, she was transferred to a more secure facility, and she served the remainder of her term at the federal women’s prison in Dublin, California. She was released from custody on parole on December 31, 2007 at the age of 77, after serving 32 years of her life sentence. On May 28, 2009, she appeared on NBC's Today program, and told Matt Lauer, "I am glad that I didn't kill him[Ford], but I don't regret trying."
In an interview in 2004, Ford described Moore as "off her mind" and said that he continued making public appearances, even after two attempts on his life within such a short time, because "a president has to be aggressive, has to meet the people."
Interestingly enough, Moore had been picked up by San Francisco police on an illegal handgun charge the day before the Ford incident, but was released following her arrest. The police confiscated her .44 caliber pistol and 113 rounds of pistol ammunition.
On the day of the assassination attempt, Moore was about 40 feet away from President Ford when she fired a single shot at him with a different pistol, a .38 caliber revolver. She was standing in the crowd across the street from the St. Francis Hotel. She was using a gun she bought in haste that same morning and did not know the sight was off by six inches. When she fired at Ford, her bullet just missed his head by just that much. FBI case agent, Richard Vitamanti, measured the location the next day. After she fired her first shot and realized she had missed, she raised her arm again, but Oliver Sipple, a Marine, dove towards her, knocking her arm the second time, and saving President Ford's life.
Judge Samuel Conti, in the course of sentencing Moore, said that Moore would have killed President Ford had she had her own gun, and it was only "because her gun was faulty," that saved the president's life.
Oliver Sipple said at the time: "I saw it [her gun] pointed out there and I grabbed for it. I lunged and grabbed the woman's arm and the gun went off." The second shot which Moore fired ricocheted off the entrance to the hotel and slightly injured a bystander.
Moore pled guilty to attempted assassination and was sentenced to life in prison.At her sentencing hearing she said "Am I sorry I tried? Yes and no. Yes, because it accomplished little except to throw away the rest of my life. And, no, I'm not sorry I tried, because at the time it seemed a correct expression of my anger."
In 1979, Moore escaped from the Alderson Federal Prison Camp in Alderson, West Virginia, but was recaptured only hours later. After her return, she was transferred to a more secure facility, and she served the remainder of her term at the federal women’s prison in Dublin, California. She was released from custody on parole on December 31, 2007 at the age of 77, after serving 32 years of her life sentence. On May 28, 2009, she appeared on NBC's Today program, and told Matt Lauer, "I am glad that I didn't kill him[Ford], but I don't regret trying."
In an interview in 2004, Ford described Moore as "off her mind" and said that he continued making public appearances, even after two attempts on his life within such a short time, because "a president has to be aggressive, has to meet the people."