Tampa Woman Indicted for Threatening Sandy Hook Parent

A Tampa woman is facing federal charges for threatening the life of a grieving parent whose child was murdered in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre. Lucy Richards, 57, was indicted in the Southern District of Florida on four counts of transmitting threats in interstate commerce, each carrying a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

The indictment, unsealed December 5, 2016, alleges Richards launched a campaign of terror against the South Florida resident in January 2016, sending a barrage of threatening messages claiming the Newtown, Connecticut, shooting—which killed 20 children and six staff—was a government hoax. Richards believed the parent was complicit in the ‘fraud’ and warned of violent retribution.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, confirmed the charges. Richards was arrested in Tampa and made her initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Pizzo in the Middle District of Florida. She is scheduled to appear in Fort Lauderdale on December 19, 2016.

Court records reveal Richards’ threats were not spontaneous but part of a calculated effort to intimidate and harass. The messages, transmitted via digital channels, crossed state lines—triggering federal jurisdiction under Title 18, United States Code, Section 875(c). Investigators say Richards persisted despite no personal connection to the victim, driven solely by conspiracy theories.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen E. Gilbert. Ferrer praised the FBI’s investigative rigor and acknowledged cooperation from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida. Authorities stress the threats were taken seriously, given the history of violence targeting Sandy Hook families by extremist conspiracy theorists.

An indictment is not a conviction. Lucy Richards is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Related court documents are available through the Southern District of Florida’s public docket at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.