'The Kings of Tupelo' explains a wild attempt to kill Obama. Here is where the would-be assassin is now.
Associated Press
- James Everett Duchtske tried to assassinate Barack Obama with ricin letters in 2013.
- He carried out the plot to frame his associate, Paul Kevin Curtis.
- The wild story is the focus of the Netflix docuseries, "The Kings of Tupelo."
James Everett Dutschke, a former Taekwondo instructor, sent poisoned-laced letters in an attempt to kill President Barack Obama in 2013.
The failed attempt was meant to frame his associate, Paul Kevin Curtis, an Elvis impersonator.
Netflix explains how the bizarre set of events unfolded in its latest true crime docuseries, "The Kings of Tupelo."
The three-part series is mainly told from Curtis' perspective, as he explains his belief that an illegal organ harvesting operation was being run out of a Mississippi medical center.
The feud began when Dutschke refused to publish Curtis' claims in a newspaper he owned.
It culminated in an April 2013 attempt kill Obama as well as Roger Wicker, a US Senator from Mississippi, and a local judge.
Dutschke sent letters to the trio that were dusted with the poison ricin.
James Everett Dutschke is serving a 25-year prison sentence for sending the ricin letters
Reuters
GQ profiled Curtis 2013, a few months after the attempts. He told the magazine that authorities arrested him before realizing that Dutschke was actually the prepatrator.
The Secret Service managed to intercept the letters to Obama and Wicker. Although the letter to Holland was opened, no one was hurt.
Dutschke was arrested 10 days after Curtis and charged with the attempted assassination.
He struck a plea deal with federal prosecutors, agreeing to a 25-year prison sentence, with no right to appeal. He was sentenced in May 2014.
According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Dutschke remains incarcerated in the Tucson penitentiary and is not due for release until 2034.