A woman, Pascale Cecile Veronique Ferrier, a dual citizen of Canada and France, has been sentenced to nearly 22 years in prison for sending threatening letters containing homemade ricin poison to then-President Donald Trump at the White House in 2020, according to the US Justice Department. Ferrier pleaded guilty to violating biological weapons laws earlier this year for sending highly toxic ricin-filled letters not only to Trump but also to eight Texas state law enforcement officials. The Justice Department revealed that Ferrier had been detained in Texas for 10 weeks in 2019 and she believed that the law enforcement officers were responsible for her detention.

Furthermore, it was stated that Ferrier had used the Twitter social media platform to propose that someone should shoot Trump in the face. The toxic envelope, addressed to Trump, was intercepted in September 2020 at the White House mail sorting facility in Washington. US Postal Service personnel flagged it as suspicious and immediately contacted the FBI. These details were disclosed in an FBI affidavit filed with the charging documents at that time.

The sentencing took place in Washington, where Ferrier was handed a 262-month prison term, as outlined in a plea agreement with prosecutors. The defense attorney, Eugene Ohm, portrayed Ferrier as an "inordinately intelligent" French immigrant with no prior criminal record. He mentioned that she had earned a master's degree in engineering and raised two children as a single parent. However, prosecutors argued that Ferrier had made the ricin at her home in Quebec and mailed the deadly poison, which was derived from processing castor beans, to Trump.

The letter sent by Ferrier to Trump referred to him as "The Ugly Tyrant Clown" and contained threatening remarks, stating: "If it doesn't work, I'll find a better recipe for another poison, or I might use my gun when I'll be able to come. Enjoy! FREE REBEL SPIRIT." Fortunately, the letter was intercepted at the mail sorting facility before reaching the White House. Ferrier was arrested while attempting to enter a border crossing in Buffalo, N.Y., where authorities found her carrying a gun, a knife, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

In addition to the letters sent to Trump, Ferrier had also targeted law enforcement officials in Texas. Investigators discovered eight similar letters addressed to the officials in charge of the Texas jail where Ferrier had been held after refusing to leave a park area as it closed.

During her sentencing, Ferrier made a winding speech to the judge, expressing herself as a "peaceful and genuinely kind person." However, she admitted feeling anger towards unfairness, abuses of power, and what she referred to as "stupid rules." Ferrier also spoke about her regrets of not doing enough to support her values when her children were young and identified herself as an “activist” rather than a "terrorist." She showed little remorse but expressed her desire to find peaceful means to achieve her goals.

U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich presided over the case and imposed the 262-month prison sentence outlined in the plea agreement. The judge also ordered Ferrier's expulsion from the country once she is released and mandated her to be under supervised release for life if she ever returns. Judge Friedrich noted a "real disconnect" between Ferrier's actions and the image she presented to the court. Furthermore, she rebutted Ferrier's assertions of activism, stating, "That isn't really activism. I hope you have no desire to continue on this path."

Prosecutor Michael Friedman commended the sentence, considering it an "appropriately harsh punishment" that sends a clear message. He emphasized that politically motivated violence has no place in the United States and that there is no excuse for threatening public officials or targeting public servants.