In 2017, a man showed up at the emergency room and confessed that he'd accidentally poisoned himself with homemade ricin. He was federally charged with possessing a biological agent, but his case was dismissed on almost unbelievable technicality. But he's not the only man who thinks he can create the perfect weapon from nothing but a handful of beans. Original Air Date: 7.31.25 Sources: https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional/ajc-watchdog-north-man-arrested-for-ricin-radicalized-online/wdxws9G7zMmaUDmm22njYK/ https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/the-perfect-poison-ricin-used-in-3-recent-cases/ https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17023504/united-states-v-jordan/ https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/6378803/united-states-v-siers-hill/ https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/6293428/united-states-v-gibbs/ Melissa Abbes, Marc Montana, Christophe Curti, Patrice Vanelle. Ricin poisoning: A review on contamination source, diagnosis, treatment, prevention and reporting of ricin poisoning. Toxicon, Volume 195, 2021 Tucker, Jonathan B. “Dilemmas of a Dual-Use Technology: Toxins in Medicine and Warfare.” Politics and the Life Sciences, vol. 13, no. 1, 1994, pp. 51–62 Bergen, Peter, et al. “Key Trends in Terrorism.” Terrorism in America 18 Years After 9/11, New America, 2019, pp. 45–50 Leo J. Schep, Wayne A. Temple, Grant A. Butt, Michael D. Beasley. Ricin as a weapon of mass terror — Separating fact from fiction. Environment International, Volume 35, Issue 8, 2009 https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/15/us/ricin-terrorism-plot-sentencing.html https://www.govinfo.gov/app/collection/cfr https://www.govinfo.gov/app/collection/uscode https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/744 https://thebulletin.org/2013/06/barely-lethal/ https://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=6020875&page=1 https://slate.com/technology/2012/01/white-powder-hoaxes-a-trend-in-fake-terrorism.html https://www.justice.gov/archive/tax/usaopress/2002/txdv02091.html https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-devon-49434687 https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/sep/22/woman-poison-plot-mother-breaking-bad-court https://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/breaking-bad-inspired-georgetown-student-charged-ricin https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-34288380 USAMRIID’s MEDICAL MANAGEMENT OF BIOLOGICAL CASUALTIES HANDBOOK, Ninth Edition https://usamriid.health.mil/assets/docs/training/USAMRIIDs_Blue_Book_9th_edition_PDF_format.pdf See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
