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Ex-Attorney Kenelm L. Shirk was sentenced to time served and charged with a $10,000 fine. He further received a year of supervised release with conditions, a press release by the U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO), Pennsylvania.
Upset about the results of the 2020 presidential election, the 72-year-old had threatened to murder Democrat members of the United States Senate.
Soon after, he started planning to kill government officials and told his wife, who then alerted authorities out of fear.
On January 21, 2021, Shirk loaded his car with firearms and ammunition and went to Washington, D.C., to carry out the attack, the U.S. DOJ said. However, he was arrested near Shippensburg state police stationed along Interstate 81 intercepted him.
Kenelm L. Shirk has since remained behind bars for over a year. Following his arrest, Shirk was ordered to comply with psychiatric counseling, forfeit the weapons and ammunition involved in the case and provide a DNA sample.
Kenelm L. Shirk's wife remains concerned about him
The results of the 2020 presidential election and the January 6 riot in Washington caused an argument between Shirk and his wife. Soon after, Shirk allegedly told his wife about his plans to attack government officials in Washington. Taken aback by his claims, his wife contacted authorities.
She also claimed Shirk threatened her life. Officials stated that he would commit "suicide by cop" if police crossed paths with him.
Following his wife's criminal complaint against him, State Police tracked his location by pinging him on his cell phone. Once in their custody, the police confiscated a rifle, handguns, and ammunition from the vehicle he was driving.
Police took Kenelm L. Shirk to the hospital for a mental evaluation following a request from Shirk's wife that he be involuntarily committed, the complaint stated.
Shirk's mental evaluation raises alarms
A nurse at the Chambersburg Hospital who performed a psych evaluation of Shirk on January 22 after his arrest revealed how serious Shirk was about claims of killing his wife and government officials.
Shirk reportedly revealed his plans to the nurse, saying he "had to get up early enough to beat traffic and make it to government officials' houses before they left for work" in Washington.
Meanwhile, another nurse at the hospital spoke about finding a "to-do" list in his belongings during his visit to the ER. The list included items like "guns, ammo, rope, tools, meds, magazine."
One of the nurses said she found the former attorney's behavior particularly disturbing.
Referring to the emotions of the nurse, the police stated in a complaint:
"She had a strong gut feeling and instinct that this was more than just a guy who was having a bad day and angry about the election."
Since his arrest, Kenelm L. Shirk has been disbarred by the Disciplinary Board of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
