An Altadena man who allegedly fired BB guns at the Planned Parenthood facility in Pasadena on several occasions was arrested Friday on federal charges of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm for carrying a loaded handgun during one of the attacks on the women’s reproductive health clinic.
Richard Royden Chamberlin, 53, who also maintains a residence in Ontario, was arrested by FBI special agents. The arrest was made pursuant to a one-count criminal complaint that charges him with the illegal possession of a .22-caliber handgun, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Chamberlin is expected to make his initial appearance Friday afternoon in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles.
According to an affidavit in support of the complaint, on multiple occasions in 2020 and 2021, Planned Parenthood Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley reported it had been fired upon by the occupant of a moving vehicle.
Video surveillance from several of these attacks showed a Chevrolet Malibu allegedly registered to Chamberlin driving by with its window down when the shots were fired. Planned Parenthood suspected Chamberlin was using a BB gun because of multiple pellets lodged in the facility near the front door.
“During one of these shootings on March 30, 2021, a patient’s support companion was nearly hit as she waited on the front porch” of the Planned Parenthood facility, the affidavit states. “In addition to incurring the costs of repairs and added security, Planned Parenthood has had to cancel patient appointments and the staff has been emotionally traumatized not knowing when the next shooting will occur.”
After another reported BB gun shooting on May 7 last year, the Pasadena Police Department located Chamberlin in his Malibu near the Planned Parenthood facility. Investigators found in Chamberlin’s vehicle multiple BB guns, as well as a Phoenix Arms .22-caliber handgun loaded with 10 bullets in a backpack on the front passenger seat, according to federal prosecutors.
Chamberlin, who was previously convicted of a felony in Arizona, is prohibited from possessing firearms, prosecutors noted.
If convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm, Chamberlin would face up to 10 years in federal prison.
