Peninsula Daily News
news sources
OLYMPIA — A 51-year-old Pierce County man has been arrested for allegedly threatening Gov. Chris Gregoire.
The State Patrol said Robert R. Locke made three threats via the Internet this morning. Court documents say the first e-mail arrived at 6:09 a.m. and read, in part, “I hope you have the opportunity to see one of your family members raped and murdered by a sexual predator.”
Two minutes later, another e-mail arrived: “You should be burned at the stake like any heretic.”
Two minutes after the second message, a request form arrived for an event at the Governor’s Mansion, sponsored by an organization called “Gregoire Must Die.” Under “topic,” investigators said it read: “Gregoire’s public execution.
Investigators traced the source of the e-mail by noon and went to Locke’s home but he wasn’t there. They found him around 2:30 p.m. walking along 200th St. East in Pierce County and arrested him without incident.
Documents say Locke apologized for his temper and poor judgment and said he “needed the outlet at the moment and it was there.”
Locke reportedly told investigators that he was upset because the state notified him that his Department of Social and Health Services benefits would be reduced.
Locke told detectives that he Googled “State of Washington” and “Governor”, to find the governor’s website, to “give her a piece of my mind.”
Locke has since been booked into the Pierce County jail for investigation of making threats against the governor, which is a felony.
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The PDN’s Seattle news partner, KOMO-TV, contributed to this report.
