Man arrested, charged with having Molotov cocktail outside D.C. church ahead of high-profile Mass

A man was arrested and charged with having a Molotov cocktail outside a Washington, D.C., Catholic church on Sunday ahead of a high-profile Mass meant to mark the start of the Supreme Court term.

Metropolitan police said 41-year-old Louis Geri, of Vineland, New Jersey, was arrested at the steps of the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle on Rhode Island Avenue, Northwest, after setting up a tent and refusing to leave. Officers determined that Geri had previously been barred from the Cathedral, although they didn’t elaborate on the reason.

Police said officers observed multiple suspicious items, including vials of liquid and possible fireworks, inside Geri’s tent. Members of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal team and the Arson Task Force responded to the church.

The FBI said it responded to the church after reports of an individual with explosives.

Geri was arrested and charged with unlawful entry, threats to kidnap or injure a person and possession of a Molotov cocktail. His motive for being at the church steps was not immediately clear.

St. Matthew’s Cathedral was celebrating the Red Mass, an annual Mass to mark the start of the U.S. Supreme Court term. There were no justices spotted at Sunday’s Mass.

Supreme Court justices have been grappling with a rise in violence and threats towards them as political discourse heats up — particularly after 2022, when news leaked that the Court was poised to overturn the landmark decision Roe v. Wade.

On Friday, a California resident was sentenced to eight years in prison for the attempted assassination of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who voted to overturn Roe.

Justice Amy Barrett, who is a conservative and a devout Catholic, recently told CBS News that despite the threats and protests, she is not afraid.

“You can’t live your life in fear,” she continued. “And I think people who threaten — the goal is to cause fear. And I’m not afraid. I’m not going to reward threats with their intended reaction.”