Sara Jane Moore, a mother of four entwined in radical ideologies, infamously fired shots at President Ford in 1975, hoping to spark a revolution. https://t.co/s9g4Pax8QH
— NYT Obituaries (@NYTObits) September 26, 2025
The New York Times reports:
In Memoriam: Sara Jane Moore, Notorious Would-Be Assassin of President Ford, Passes at 95
Sara Jane Moore, a radical figure and mother of four known for attempting to assassinate President Gerald R. Ford outside the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco on September 22, 1975, has died at the age of 95 in a nursing home in Franklin, Tennessee. The news was confirmed by Demetria Kalodimos, a reporter who had forged a friendship with Moore.
This audacious attempt took place just 17 days after another assassination attempt by Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, a follower of Charles Manson, who aimed a gun at Ford but was apprehended before firing.
On that fateful day in San Francisco, approximately 3,000 onlookers gathered near Union Square to see the president leave the hotel. Moore, then 45, had been questioned by Secret Service agents the previous day but was released. Taking aim from across the street, she fired two shots with a chrome-plated .38-caliber revolver. The first shot missed, and as she prepared to take a second shot, Oliver W. Sipple—a former Marine—intervened, deflecting the bullet that subsequently grazed a bystander. Chaos ensued as Secret Service agents quickly whisked Ford away to safety, while Sipple and police apprehended Moore.
A decade ago, during an interview with CNN, Sara Jane Moore articulated her motivations for this violent act. Her remarks resonate strongly today, reflecting a troubling echo of our current sociopolitical climate. It’s both eerie and striking how history can rhyme. Watch below:
The repetition of such volatile sentiments in our society serves as a poignant reminder: history, indeed, has a habit of revisiting us.
