Monica LaSalle, Nederland.  Fortuitous. That was the word used several times by U.S. District Court Judge Christine Arguello when describing the events of October 11, 2016 over the 2 days of a sentencing hearing for David Michael Ansberry, the man who planted a bomb in the Caribou Village Shopping Center.

Fortuitous that despite the 11 attempts that Ansberry made to detonate the bomb, not once did he manage to set it off. Although his defense attorney is claiming he never intended to hurt anyone, the sentencing has been delayed with a 30-day deadline to determine whether or not Ansberry should be tried as a terrorist.

Det. Darragh O’Nuallain, the officer who originally found the bomb in a backpack that was left out overnight propped on a Police Parking Only sign in the parking lot near the front of the police station, spent a long week in court last week either testifying or witnessing the hearing. He states that it was difficult to hear the scientific breakdown of the bomb construction facts from bomb experts, as it made him realize just how lucky he was, how fortuitous it was that the bomb didn’t go off.

While a bomb expert testified to its lethality and legitimacy in construction, reported facts such as what could have happened had the bag been dropped were quite disturbing to be heard and are being considered when determining Ansberry’s intent. Had the bomb been detonated as planned, anyone within a 25-foot radius would have been killed and anyone up to 75 feet away would have been badly wounded. The sloppiness of the bomb construction that O’Nuallain personally saw left him with the impression that none of the evidence that was eventually gathered was ever supposed to survive a blast. While the defense states that Ansberry did not intend to hurt anyone and was going to detonate in the middle of the night before the bomb was found, a definition of terrorism must be considered before sentencing: “the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims” or “seeking revenge against an organization.”

To clarify the motive, Nederland Marshal Renner Forbes killed Guy “Deputy Dawg” Gaughnor in cold blood back in 1971. He confessed to the killing in 1997 but was never prosecuted. David Michael Ansberry planted the bomb seeking revenge, or as he now claims “to make a statement” about this unjust murder, a grudge he has been carrying for 45 years.

Although this crime happened in a different era of Nederland history and has nothing to do with our current police force, Det. O’Nuallain offered an apology to Ansberry on behalf of the Nederland Police Department for these past grievous actions and for his loss. Unfortunately, this does little to alleviate the residual terrorizing feelings he experiences both on a personal level and a community level.

Personally terrorized by being considered a suspect for the first three days of the investigation, Det. O’Nuallain says he holds no personal opinions about the sentencing outcome. He feels that the FBI and US Attorney’s Office did an outstanding job of investigating and apprehending Ansberry, a big what-if for him and his family in dealing with the outcome and recovery of the situation. He maintains that he will wholeheartedly accept what the court decides. He feels that the response that day from the NPD to the community of Nederland was “NedStrong” and was particularly impressed with coworker Carole Maser’s willingness to be deputized at a moment’s notice. Grateful for all the support from unsung heroes of town, O’Nuallain has decided to drop down to part time because while he is still dealing with the after effects of the event, he loves serving the Nederland Community.

If Ansberry is classified as a terrorist, he stands to be sentenced to 20-25 years in prison. Sentencing is expected to happen in January.

(Originally published in the November 8, 2018, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)