Guilty Plea In Bomb Threat Against DC Private School

GEORGETOWN, DC — Sonia Tabizada, 36, of San Jacinto, California pleaded guilty Monday in federal court to intentionally obstructing the free exercise of religious beliefs by threatening to bomb Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School, according to a U.S. Justice Department release.

School officials announced in May 2019 that they would begin publishing same-sex wedding announcements in its alumni magazine as a way to advance the teaching that "we are all children of God ... worthy of respect and love." When Tabizada learned of this, she made multiple calls to the school, threatening violence, according to her plea agreement.

Tabizada also admitted that she left a message threatening to burn and bomb the church, and that she was going to kill school officials and students. She left an additional voicemail message stating that she would blow up the school and warned she wanted to commit "terrorism," according to the release.

"The defendant made violent threats against high school students, religious leaders, and school officials based solely on her disagreement with a private school's application of religious doctrine," said Eric Drieband, assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division, in the release. "Tolerance and religious freedom are cornerstone values in our society and the Department of Justice will continue to vigorously prosecute violent threats motivated by bias."

Read more: https://patch.com/district-columbia/washingtondc/s/hdg00/guilty-plea-bomb-threat-against-dc-private-school-report