Washington: A US court sentenced Riley English to six years and one month in prison after convicting her of attempting to assassinate Treasury Secretary Scott Bisent at the Capitol building in early 2025.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, English, a transgender woman, was arrested on January 27, 2025, and informed Capitol Police that she had traveled from Massachusetts to Washington with the intention of killing Bisent on the day of his confirmation hearing. She was in possession of two homemade Molotov cocktails, a knife, and a lighter at the time of her arrest. However, the devices were deemed inoperable, and no one was injured in the incident.

The defendant acknowledged experiencing a severe mental health crisis and drug addiction, stating in court, “I never wanted to hurt anyone. I am not a political or violent person.” Her lawyer further explained that her actions were driven by fear for the future of transgender individuals under a second Trump administration, describing the incident as a “cry for help.”

The prosecution had requested a 10-year prison sentence, arguing that the defendant had spent over a month planning a political assassination attempt amid escalating political violence in the United States. In a letter to the judge, Bisent expressed concern, stating that “the country cannot survive this attack.”

Judge Rodolfo Contreras recognized that the likelihood of her plan succeeding was “zero or very slim,” and expressed hope that her progress while in custody had put her on the right track. He also granted her credit for the 20 months she had already served in pretrial detention.

The case bears similarities to another incident involving a transgender woman from California, who was sentenced to eight years in prison for attempting to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh at his home in 2022.