Ford Assassination Attempt
Sipple was part of a crowd of about 3,000 people who had gathered outside San Francisco's St. Francis Hotel to see President Ford on September 22, 1975. Ford, just emerging from the building, was vulnerable despite heavy security protection. Sipple noticed a woman next to him had drawn and leveled a .38-caliber pistol at Ford as he headed to his limousine. Reacting instinctively, Sipple lunged at the woman, Sara Jane Moore, just as her finger squeezed the trigger. While the gun did go off, Sipple's contact was enough to deflect her aim and cause the bullet to miss. The bullet ricocheted and hit John Ludwig, a 42-year-old taxi driver. Ludwig survived. The incident came just three weeks after Lynette Fromme's assassination attempt on Ford. Reporters hounded Sipple who at first didn't want his name used, nor his location known.
Read more about this topic: Oliver Sipple
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