California History: The presidential assassination attempt that almost happened in Northern California

(FOX40.COM) — Sacramento received its first presidential visit nearly 150 years ago in 1879, and since then, it has had a relatively modest relationship with U.S. presidents who have stepped inside California’s Capitol.

However, did you know that part of Sacramento’s history with US presidents includes an attempted assassination nearly 50 years ago? And the president whom the assassination was intended for was almost assassinated again just a few weeks later in San Francisco?

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On Sept. 5, 1975, President Gerald Ford was the target of an assassination attempt while on his way to meet with then-Governor of California Jerry Brown.

Before arriving at California’s Capitol, President Ford, walking to the government building from his hotel, decided to shake hands with people crowded around his hotel and following him on his walk.

According to President Ford in an interview with The History Channel, he said, “I went to shake a hand, looked down, and instead of a hand to be shaken, it was a gun pointed directly at me.”

Ford was referring to a Colt 1911 semi-automatic .45 caliber pistol held by a woman named Santa Monica-born Lynette Fromme, who has become known as “Squeaky” Fromme.

Archives of the assassination describe Fromme as an infamous member of the Manson family, who are most commonly known for the murders of actress Sharon Tate and grocery store executive Leno LaBianca along with many others.

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In an interview, Fromme said her reason behind attempting the assassination was spawned by her desire to save redwood trees she believed were in danger of falling. She had recently spoken to a government official in San Francisco to plead for them to save the trees but was unsuccessful and returned home to Sacramento.

“When I came home from that trip, I saw on the news that [President] Ford was coming into town,” Fromme said. “My original thought was ‘I’ll go and talk to him,’ but then I realized you don’t get attention for that.”

Seeing an opportunity to bring attention to the devastation facing the redwoods, Fromme, dressed in a long, red robe, attached a gun to her leg and joined the crowd of people who were attempting to shake hands with President Ford.

President Ford said, “As I walked along, I couldn’t help but notice a lady in a very vivid red dress who kept following me,” referring to Fromme.

Fromme described the internal conflict she was dealing with and said she initially didn’t want to shoot the President as he got closer but decided to move forward with her plan at the last moment.

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As Fromme pointed her gun at President Ford, one of his Secret Service agents, Larre Buendorf, managed to place his thumb between the hammer of the gun and the gun itself, rendering it ineffective as other Secret Service agents worked to arrest Fromme.

“Take it easy, the gun didn’t go off,” Fromme recounts saying to agents who were trying to wrestle her to the ground. She adds that she was “very calm” as she was being arrested.

“I didn’t believe [President Ford’s] life was more important than the redwoods,” Fromme concludes.

After the assassination attempt, President Ford continued toward the California Capitol and shook hands with Governor Jerry Brown, who remained completely unaware of the incident, especially because the president never mentioned anything about it to him.

“I didn’t mention anything about the incident,” Ford said. “Why should I?”

Fromme received a life sentence for the assassination attempt, but in 2009, she was paroled from prison.

The gun used by Fromme that day is now in the collections of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

A few weeks later on Sept. 22, President Ford’s life was at risk again when Sara Jane Moore tried to shoot him following a presidential address to the World Affairs Council with a .38 Special revolver, making Ford the only president in American history to receive two unsuccessful attempts at assassination.

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