Incident Summary:
11/11/1988: Animal rights activist, Fran Stephanie Trutt, placed a 13-inch, nail studded and radio-controlled pipe bomb outside the United States Surgical Corporation in Norwalk, Connecticut in the United States. The bomb was placed under bushes near an executive doorway and a parking space used by the founder and chairman of the corporation, Leon Hirsch, and the device(according to Trutt) was intended to scare Hirsch into stopping the company's use of live dogs in research and in testing its surgical stapling products on the animals. Trutt was arrested at the time she planted the bomb, but was intending to wait until 8am to detonate the bomb when Hirsch arrived to work. The bomb later detonated when police attempted to dismantle it at another location after the device was seized. Trutt was eventually charged, pleaded no-contest, and was sentenced to one year in prison followed by three years of probation for the attempted murder.
Overview
GTD ID:
198811110017
When:
1988-11-11
Country:
United States
Region:
North America
Province/administrative
region/u.s. state:
Connecticut
City:
Norwalk
Location Details:
at US Surgical Corporation at 150 Glover Avenue in Norwalk, Connecticut
What
Attack Information
Type of Attack () |
Bombing/Explosion |
Successful Attack? () |
No |
Target Information ()
Target Type: Business |
Name of Entity |
US Surgical Corporation |
Specific Description |
Leon Hirsch, founder and chairman of US Surgical Corporation |
Nationality of Target |
United States |
Additional Information
Hostages |
No |
Ransom |
No |
Property Damage |
No |
How
Weapon Information
Type |
Sub-type |
Explosives |
Remote Trigger |
Weapon Details |
13-inch, radio-controlled, nail-filled pipe bomb |
Additional Information
Suicide Attack? | No |
Part of Multiple Incident? | No |
Criterion 1 () |
Yes |
Criterion 2 () |
Yes |
Criterion 3 () |
Yes |
Additional Information |
After Trutt was arrested, authorities searched her apartment and found several more pipe bombs and a shot gun, along with animal rights literature and pictures of tortured animals. Trutt was also sentenced in a different trial for the possession of explosives and bomb making materials. Additionally, although the bomb placed outside US Surgical did not detonate on the spot, authorities claimed it was a powerful bomb, filled with nails which were meant to shred people, and thus, could have potentially caused serious injuries. |
Who
Perpetrator Group Information
Group Name |
Claimed Responsibility |
Animal Rights extremists |
No |
Perpetrator Statistics
Number of Perpetrators |
1 |
Number of Captured Perpetrators |
1 |
Casualty Information
Total Number of Casualties |
0 Fatalities / 0 Injured |
Total Number of Fatalities |
0 |
Number of U.S. Fatalities |
0 |
Number of Perpetrator Fatalities |
0 |
Total Number of Injured |
0 |
Number of U.S. Injured |
0 |
Number of Perpetrators Injured |
0 |
Sources
Sources
Robert D. McFadden, "A Bombing Is Thwarted In Norwalk," New York Times, November 12, 1988. |
John T. McQuiston, "Woman Enters No-Contest Plea In a Bomb Plot," New York Times, April 17, 1990. |
"Judge sets trial date for animal rights activist," United Press International, January 19, 1990. |
Criteria
Criteria 1
The act must be aimed at attaining a political, economic, religious, or social goal. In terms of economic goals, the exclusive pursuit of profit does not satisfy this criterion. It must involve the pursuit of more profound, systemic economic change.
Criterion 2
There must be evidence of an intention to coerce, intimidate, or convey some other message to a larger audience (or audiences) than the immediate victims. It is the act taken as a totality that is considered, irrespective if every individual involved in carrying out the act was aware of this intention. As long as any of the planners or decision-makers behind the attack intended to coerce, intimidate or publicize, the intentionality criterion is met.
Criterion 3
The action must be outside the context of legitimate warfare activities. That is, the act must be outside the parameters permitted by international humanitarian law (particularly the prohibition against deliberately targeting civilians or non-combatants.
Doubt Terrorism Proper
The existence of a "Yes" for "Doubt Terrorism Proper?" records reservation, in the eyes of GTD analysts, that the incident in question is truly terrorism. Such uncertainty, however, was not deemed to be sufficient to disqualify the incident from inclusion into the GTD. Furthermore, such a determination of doubt is subsequently coded by GTD analysts as conforming to one of four possible alternative designations: 1) Insurgency/Guerilla Action; 2) Internecine Conflict Action; 3) Mass Murder; or 4) Purely Criminal Act.
Alternate Designation
The determination of "yes" for "Doubt Terrorism Proper" by GTD analysts is coded as conforming to one of four possible alternative designations: 1) Insurgency/Guerilla Action; 2) Internecine Conflict Action; 3) Mass Murder; or 4) Purely Criminal Act.
Successful Attack
Success of a terrorist strike is defined according to the tangible effects of the attack. For example, in a typical successful bombing, the bomb detonates and destroys property and/or kills individuals, whereas an unsuccessful bombing is one in which the bomb is discovered and defused or detonates early and kills the perpetrators. Success is not judged in terms of the larger goals of the perpetrators. For example, a bomb that exploded in a building would be counted as a success even if it did not, for example, succeed in bringing the building down or inducing government repression.
Type of Attack
This field captures the general method of attack and often reflects the broad class of tactics used. It consists of the following nine categories:
- Assassination
- Armed Assault
- Unarmed Assault
- Bombing/Explosion
- Hijacking
- Hostage taking (Barricade Incident)
- Hostage taking (Kidnapping)
- Facility / Infrastructure Attack
- Unknown
Target Information
This field captures the general type of target. It consists of the following 22 categories:
- Abortion Related
- Airports & Airlines
- Business
- Government (General)
- Government (Diplomatic)
- Educational Institution
- Food or Water Supply
- Journalists & Media
- Maritime (includes Ports and Maritime facilities)
- Military
- NGO
- Other
- Police
- Private Citizens & Property
- Religious Figures/Institutions
- Telecommunication
- Terrorists
- Tourists
- Transportation (other than aviation)
- Unknown
- Utilities
- Violent Political Parties