MADISON, Wisconsin (LifeSiteNews) — A federal judge sentenced a domestic terrorist who firebombed a pro-life group to just seven and a half years in prison.
Hridindu Sankar Roychowdhury pled guilty to “attempting to cause damage by means of fire or an explosive to a building in Madison,” according to a Department of Justice (DOJ) news release. Roychowdhury attacked the Wisconsin Family Action office in May 2022 in reaction to the leaked Supreme Court opinion reversing Roe v. Wade.
Authorities charged and arrested Roychowdhury, a PhD scientist from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as he was attempting to fly out of the country in 2023.
“If abortions aren’t safe then you aren’t either,” Roychowdhury graffitied, along with “1312.”
“Members of Antifa and other radical leftist groups often make use the symbol of an encircled ‘A,’ which stands for ‘anarchy.’ 1312 is a numerical code referencing the anti-police acronym ‘ACAB,’ meaning ‘All Cops Are B-stards,'” LifeSiteNews previously reported.
“Today’s sentencing is the result of the FBI’s commitment to use all of our resources to aggressively pursue anyone who uses violent tactics in an attempt to impose their views on others,” FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate stated in an April 10 news release.
However, the DOJ and Wisconsin Family Action wanted a stronger punishment.
President Emeritus Julaine Appling criticized Obama-appointed Judge William Conley’s sentence.
Appling stated in a news release:
May 8, 2022, is forever emblazoned on my mind. It was a very visual reminder that people who disagree with us can and will use violence to try to silence us. We recommended the defendant receive 15 years imprisonment. We based that on justice—on the punishment fitting the crime, not on retribution or vengeance. This was a serious, premeditated crime that was the first of nearly 100 attacks on prolife organizations across the country. In light of this, we are disappointed in the judge’s decision regarding a crime the judge called ‘terrorism’ multiple times. The US Attorney’s office had also recommended 12-15 years imprisonment. A civil society does not exist if violence is the default reaction to disagreeing with people.
President Christine File also criticized the decision.
“We are disappointed. The court missed an opportunity to strengthen the protection of constitutional rights like free speech and free exercise, rights that have themselves been under assault in recent years,” she stated.
“The defendant’s act of domestic terrorism to threaten our people, our families and friends, our neighbors, and our greater pro-life community is unconscionable,” she stated. “Ultimately, the defendant—and others who attacked pro-life groups they disagree with—attacked our civil society and the constitutional rights foundational to it.”
Despite Chowdhury admitting to firebombing the center in an act of domestic terrorism, dozens of people showed up in support of the far-left criminal.
File said that, in the two years after his attack, Chowdhury never showed remorse until prompted by the judge. However, the violence will not the stop the group from fighting for the most vulnerable human beings.
“It is notable that nearly 60 people filled the courtroom to support this person who committed a violent, unprovoked, and hate-filled crime,” the pro-life group’s president stated.
“Will the society-of-tomorrow support terrorism intended to silence people with whom we disagree? But perhaps most concerning, in the two years since the attack the defendant did not at any point express remorse to the people he targeted and harmed—until the judge asked him,” File stated.
The judge should have “weighed this callousness towards us more significantly,” File stated.
“Given the severity of his crime and the charges he pled guilty to, the sentence lacks proportionality. However, as we’ve said since the day of the attack, no act or threat of violence or terrorism will deter us from our mission—being a voice for the voiceless.”
Jail time is a small victory, as pro-life groups have been repeatedly attacked
The sentencing of the pro-abortion domestic terrorist is a small victory, as hundreds of pro-life groups and churches have been attacked since the leaked decision reversing Roe v. Wade in 2022.
However, other criminals have received light, if any, sentences.
A Bowling Green University student who graffitied a pro-life pregnancy resource center will spend just two years on probation and pay a $2,000 fine due to a misdemeanor charge under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act.
More seriously, an individual accused of planning to kill Justice Brett Kavanaugh partially in anticipation of his support for reversing Roe v. Wade has yet to have a trial date set, even though he admitted to the assassination plot.
At the same time, the Biden DOJ has brought criminal charges against peaceful pro-lifers under the FACE Act.
For example, it found an old state charge that had been tossed out by a Pennsylvania judge and used it to unsuccessfully prosecute Mark Houck.
The pro-life dad of seven had pushed away an erratic pro-abortion escort who was using vulgar language toward Houck and his son. Federal law enforcement conducted an armed, early-morning raid on the Houck house. Ultimately, Houck beat the charge.
The DOJ also charged pro-lifers who sang and prayed outside of an abortion facility’s office with misdemeanors, even though no one was actually blocked from going inside.
Seven others were also charged with felony “conspiracy against rights” charges, as reported by LifeSiteNews. However, one, Caroline Davis, has been persuaded by the federal government to flip and testify against other pro-life activists.