Susan L. Scott of Fort Smith has been charged with threatening to cause a catastrophe and resisting arrest after police say she threatened to use a bomb to kill Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
According to court records, Scott called the Capitol on June 14, threatened to build a bomb and said she would use that bomb to destroy the governor’s office. In the affidavit for probable cause for her arrest, Fort Smith police said they arrived at Scott’s house a short time after her threat to the governor’s office, at which point Scott continued to verbally threaten Sanders’ life. As she was being taken into custody, Scott allegedly kicked and head-butted the arresting officer, resulting in an additional charge of second-degree battery on a police officer.
The available information does not specify the reason for Scott’s animosity toward Sanders. Scott’s voter-registration does not indicate a party preference; however, voter records show she voted in Republican primaries from 2014 through 2024.
Both charges are class-D felonies that carry potential sentences of up to six years each and potential fines of up to $10,000 per offense. Scott was arraigned in Sebastian County Circuit Court today and was released on bond with specific conditions imposed on her, including having no contact of any kind with the governor’s office, possessing no weapons or explosives, having no contact with Sanders or Sanders’ family and staying away from the Sanders family’s home, work and school.
Scott, who lists herself as retired and on a fixed income, has asked to be represented by a public defender.