Circuit Wire — a daily news update from the Circuit.
Nathaniel James McGuire, 22, of Santa Maria, California, pleaded guilty on Monday to detonating a bomb inside a county courthouse in an attack meant to kill sheriff's deputies and a judge. The Justice Department said he threw a backpack holding an explosive device past the building's security screening equipment on September 24, 2024.
The courthouse serves the Santa Barbara County Superior Court. McGuire threw the backpack toward sheriff's deputies from the doorway. The device slid between a victim's legs and detonated outside a courtroom. Three people were injured. Five were taken to hospital and released the same day. The building sustained about $35,000 in damage and closed for several days.
McGuire did not stop after the blast. He went back to his vehicle to collect two long guns and 10 Molotov cocktails, according to his plea agreement. He intended to re-enter the courthouse, kill the deputies and, in his words, "splatter" a judge. A courthouse security guard and several law enforcement officers stopped him at the vehicle.
He admitted he acted in retaliation for what he saw as government wrongs, including the seizure of his firearms by Santa Barbara County sheriff's deputies earlier that year. He told prosecutors he targeted the judge and the deputies because of their status as government officials. A search of his home turned up further bomb-making materials. He has been in federal custody since September 2024.
"McGuire launched a vicious, terroristic assault on a court of law with the intent to kill law enforcement officers and a judge," said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg, who credited court security and law enforcement with limiting the harm.
McGuire pleaded guilty to one count of use of a weapon of mass destruction and one count of malicious destruction of a building using an explosive. He is scheduled to be sentenced on March 1, 2027, and faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office and the Santa Maria Police Department are investigating the case.
First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California called the attack a brazen act of terror that caused physical, structural and emotional harm. He said people who use bombs against law enforcement officials, judges and other government personnel must be held accountable. Assistant US Attorneys Mark P. Takla and Kathrynne N. Seiden are prosecuting the case, with help from Assistant US Attorney Alexander Su and Trial Attorney Patrick Cashman of the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department's National Security Division.
Want a weekly roundup of the major stories shaping the security industry? The On The Circuit newsletter is read by more than 12,000 protection professionals.
Spotted something we should cover? Send tips and feedback via circuit-magazine.com.