Armed man who threatened Rep. Pramila Jayapal outside her home pleads guilty to stalking
By Bryan Ke
July 3, 2023
The armed man who threatened Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D, WA-7) outside her home in West Seattle last year has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor stalking charge.
Key details: Brett Forsell, 49, has been sentenced to 364 days in King County Jail on Thursday, which will be followed by a 24-month probation.
Additional conditions: Forsell must undergo substance abuse, alcohol abuse and mental health evaluations and agree to an anti-stalking order that also comes with a firearm possession prohibition of eight years.
He was also ordered to avoid criminal law violations.
What happened: Forsell hurled obscenities outside Jayapal’s home on July 9, 2022, and yelled threatening remarks at the U.S. representative, telling her, “Go back to India, I’m going to kill you,” according to a neighbor.
A police report noted that Forsell was in possession of a .40 caliber Glock semi-automatic at the time and court records reportedly revealed that his gun had a live round in its chamber.
Arrested, released and charged: Forsell was arrested at the scene after police arrived on malicious harassment charges, but he was eventually released from jail. Later that month, however, he was charged with felony stalking.
Speaking to the FBI, Forsell admitted that he had driven past Jayapal’s house more than once and yelled expletives outside her home.
He reportedly claimed that he was drinking on the night of the incident and was struggling with mental illness. He also said his actions toward the Democratic representative were a “manifestation of a manic episode.”
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