Former Assailant Sara Jane Moore Dies at 95

Sara Jane Moore, known for her 1975 attempt to assassinate President Gerald Ford, passed away at the age of 95. She died at a nursing facility in Franklin, Tennessee, after relocating there in 2022 following her release from prison in 2007.

Moore’s assassination attempt occurred on September 22, 1975, near the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. The 45-year-old, originally from West Virginia, fired two shots at President Ford. Her first shot missed him by just six inches, and she was quickly subdued by Marine Oliver Sipple during her second shot. A ricochet injured a bystander, but Ford remained unharmed.

Moore later expressed a belief that if she had possessed a larger caliber firearm, she might have succeeded. She was taken into custody and brought before federal court. Two weeks after her arrest, Moore revealed she had previously been an FBI informant, reporting on various leftist groups, including an organization called “People-In-Need,” which sought to free kidnapping victim Patricia Hearst. She claimed that FBI agents had taught her about leftist ideology in 1974 as part of her infiltration efforts.

The FBI confirmed her role as an informant. Moore’s motivations stemmed from her belief that eliminating Ford, the only modern president who never secured a vote, would spark a revolution and topple the government. She later reflected in a 2015 interview that she thought there would be a revolution, which her actions might have triggered.

Her attempt followed closely after a similar failed assassination attempt by Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, another member of the Manson family, who pointed her gun at Ford but did not fire in Sacramento. Moore expressed that her reasons were rooted in political beliefs, and she had considered her actions a catalyst for change.

In recent years, Moore commented on her past, stating she had “deliberately not thought about” the event and that it was something she simply went on with her life after — despite spending over three decades in prison. She maintained the stance that she had always been a “good citizen,” even after her incarceration.