A woman accused of lighting fire to a Casper gender-treatment and abortion clinic two weeks before its planned opening struck a plea agreement Monday in the federal arson case against her.
Federal prosecutors charged Lorna Roxanne Green, 22, with arson in March for allegedly spiking the Wellspring Health Access building in Casper with gasoline and setting it on fire. She was later indicted. The charge is punishable by between five and 20 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.
Green’s plea agreement has not been made public as the current U.S. Attorney for Wyoming does not display plea agreements publicly and declined to comment on the agreement until after she appears in court for a change of plea hearing. It's not known what Green is pleading to nor the agreed upon sentencing guidelines.
The document represents a change in the course for Green's case. She now is on track to change her plea and be sentenced, rather than fight the charge at her trial, which was scheduled to begin July 24.
A guilty-plea variation and a sentencing are not guaranteed, however. Judges also must review plea agreements, before accepting them.
According to the criminal complaint filing, Green, admitted to setting the clinic on fire because she was having nightmares about what would happen there when it opened.
The Wellspring Health Access clinic had planned to open June 14, 2022, about two weeks prior to the arson, which delayed its opening.
No one reported Green for months while authorities offered $5,000 in reward money for her capture.
But an anonymous donor added $10,000 to the reward money March 3, and “several tipsters identified a potential suspect,” leading to Green’s arrest, according to a March statement by the Casper Police Department.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
