Early Friday afternoon, the suspect in the Santa Maria courthouse explosion, Nathaniel McGuire, appeared in federal court for a bond hearing. The judge ordered that he remain jailed without bond through the remainder of the court proceedings.
On Wednesday morning, investigators say McGuire threw an explosive toward a security screening station at the courthouse where he was supposed to appear on a gun charge. At least five people were injured.
"We saw an individual who went to a courthouse and specifically targeted sheriff's deputies saying he wanted to kill sheriff's deputies and specifically targeted the judges saying he wanted to kill the judge," said U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada who is handling the federal case against McGuire.
Estrada says that while charges have been filed, the investigation is not over, adding that detectives and the FBI have been combing through McGuire's house and car for evidence.
Why did the FBI get involved?
"When we see this type of conduct, especially not just the throwing of the bomb, he goes back and tries to get to his car where he has a shotgun, a rifle, ammunition, and 10 Molotov cocktails. He was planning major destruction," Estrada explained. "What we saw here was an attack on law enforcement, an attack on public officials. That is something we can't accept, something we can't tolerate, so it's important that us as the federal authorities get involved to make sure there are real consequences for this individual and that he is brought to justice in federal court."
Why federal court?
"I think the scale of what he did and what he planned is part of the reason it's being charged federally," Estrada said. "Also the expertise of the federal government will help in terms of analyzing explosives and showing the full scope of what this individual did."
In the 9-page affidavit, McGuire is accused of malicious damage to a building by means of an explosive. If convicted, he could face anywhere from 7 to 40 years in prison.
"The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Certainly, we are confident that based on the evidence we've collected thus far, that we'll be able to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt," Estrada said.
He adds that McGuire’s computer and other digital devices are still being inspected.
Estrada says it’s hard to know how long the court process will take.
"Litigation could take some time," Estrada said. "It's hard to predict. It depends on what the defendant does, whether he accepts responsibility or chooses to go to trial. That being said, we're confident in the case. We have to litigate it as appropriate and we want to make sure this person feels the full force of the law with regard to the actions he chose to take."
McGuire is scheduled to return to court for his arraignment on October 18 in Los Angeles.
The judge at his hearing on Friday also ordered that McGuire undergo a mental health evaluation after he had an outburst in court, yelling about world events and blaming the government, shouting, "You guys are the real criminals," the Associated Press reported.
