New Jersey Man Sentenced to Nearly Six Years for Bringing Explosives to D.C. Church
Louis Geri was sentenced for possessing homemade explosive devices and making demands outside the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle.
A New Jersey man has been sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison for bringing homemade explosives to a Washington, D.C., church that was preparing to host an annual Mass for Supreme Court justices.
Louis Geri received his sentence on Monday from U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss, who noted the seriousness of the offense while also considering Geri's significant mental health history. Geri will also serve three years of supervised release.
Geri was arrested on October 5, 2025, outside the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle. Police discovered paperwork expressing animosity toward the Catholic Church, Jewish people, and the Supreme Court among his possessions. He had set up a tent on the church steps containing over 100 homemade explosives and a nine-page list of demands.
According to a court filing, Geri told police that "several of your people are gonna die from one of these" if his demands were not met. These demands included requests for money, an expatriation flight to Japan, and the removal of Arizona from the United States.
Prosecutors stated that Geri's intent was to destroy landmarks like the Washington Monument, the Supreme Court, and the White House if his demands were not fulfilled.
Geri's defense attorney argued that his actions were a result of a treatable medical condition, bipolar disorder, which he had been diagnosed with over two decades prior. She stated that Geri had stopped taking his medication in the months leading up to his arrest and that his conduct was not driven by malice but by a condition spiraling out of control.
Geri pleaded guilty in March to two felony counts: illegal possession of a destructive device and extortion by wrongful use of force, violence, or fear. He and prosecutors had agreed that a prison sentence between five years and 10 months and seven years and three months would be appropriate. Judge Moss was not bound by this recommendation but noted that Geri could have withdrawn his guilty plea if a longer sentence had been imposed.