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By Khaleda Rahman
National Correspondent
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Police on Sunday arrested a man with hundreds of explosives outside a church shortly before an annual Mass marking the start of the Supreme Court’s new term.
Louis Geri, 41, was taken into custody outside the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C., after setting up a tent on the steps of the church as police were attempting to clear the area ahead of the church’s annual “Red Mass,” a traditional service for judges, lawyers and others in the legal profession that is held on the Sunday before the Supreme Court begins a new term.
According to court records reviewed by Newsweek, authorities recovered “over 200 devices” from Geri’s tent, which he told officers were “grenades and explosives.” They also found a manifesto that revealed “significant animosity” toward the members of the Supreme Court, the Catholic church and others.
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Newsweek reached out to Geri’s attorney for comment via email.
Why It Matters
The incident comes at a time of heightened concern about political violence in the United States and the safety of public officials and institutions.
Threats against federal judges have also risen significantly in recent years, according to the Marshals Service. On Friday, a person who attempted to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in his home was sentenced to eight years in prison.
Several Supreme Court justices typically attend the annual Red Mass each year, but none attended Sunday’s service due to the security situation, according to the National Catholic Register.
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Who Is Louis Geri?
Police said Geri had a New Jersey driver’s license in his possession.
Few details were provided about the ma. The Daily Wire reported that Geri is from Vineland, New Jersey, but has been living in a motel in Mesa, Arizona, for several years.
He was convicted of indecent exposure in Arizona in 2021 and spent time in state prison from August 2022 to May 2023, according to the outlet.
What To Know
According to a police affidavit filed on Sunday, police had been clearing the block early on Sunday, ahead of the Red Mass, when an officer told Geri that he needed to move his tent from the church grounds.
Geri refused, telling the officer, “You might want to stay back and call the federales, I have explosives,” the affidavit said.
The affidavit said the officer notified a bomb technician with the Metropolitan Police Department’s Bomb Squad of Geri’s actions, and they approached him together. After the bomb technician told Geri that he needed to move because of a special event, he said, “I’m aware of that.”
The affidavit said Geri then threatened to test an explosive in the street.
“Do you want me to throw one out, I’ll test one out in the street? I have a hundred plus of them,” he said.
After being told he would be removed against his will, Geri said, “Several of your people are gonna die from one of these.”
Geri later handed the bomb technician a manifesto consisting of nine pages torn from a notebook with the title “Written Negotiations for the Avoidance of Destruction of Property via Detonation of Explosives," according to the affidavit.
A review of the manifesto “revealed his significant animosity towards the Catholic church, members of the Jewish faith, members of SCOTUS and ICE/ ICE facilities,” the affidavit said.
Another police affidavit filed on Monday said the bomb technician “stated there were over 200 devices recovered” from Geri’s tent. A police sergeant said the devices “appeared to be fully functional; appearing as a combination of parts designed or intended to be converted into a destructive device."
In an interview with police, Geri “described his devices as grenades and explosives containing nitromethane with a rubber band securing a fuse to be used for detonation,” the affidavit said. He “also stated he planned to use the modified bottle rockets with the aluminum foil heads attached and treated in a Thermite solution to allow for his detonation of the devices from a distance.”
Geri is facing numerous charges, including unlawful entry; manufacture, transfer, use, possession or transportation of Molotov cocktails, or other explosives for unlawful purposes; threats to kidnap or injure a person, assault on a police officer, manufacture or possession of a weapon of mass destruction (hate crime) and resisting arrest.
What People Are Saying
The Metropolitan Police Department said in an incident report provided to Newsweek that officers “were clearing the block for a special religious event. [Geri] refused to leave the premises and made threatening statements to MPD members. [Geri] was arrested for multiple offenses and transported to the Second District Station for processing.”
Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who is Catholic, told CBS News recently: "You can't live your life in fear. And I think people who threaten—the goal is to cause fear. And I'm not afraid. I'm not going to reward threats with their intended reaction.”
Cardinal Robert McElroy said during Sunday’s Red Mass: “As men and women of the law, you lie at the heart of this twofold conversation within our nation. By engaging constructively, dialogically, and charitably in this conversation, you can help identify a pathway forward for us all. You can bring hope.
"A second area where you can contribute as architects of hope is in the collapse of political dialogue within our nation and the growth of political violence. We have witnessed the assassination of Charlie Kirk and the assault on the Capitol. Both mark the progression from civil dialogue to uncivil dialogue to force and fear."
What Happens Next
Geri’s preliminary hearing is set for 9:15 a.m. on Thursday.
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