A 35-year-man who repeatedly threatened that he was going to stab Princess Anne, the Queen's only daughter, because she was "controlling his mind" has not been sent to jail, the court heard Thursday, June 18.
James Ballinger of Minchinhampton was first arrested by the police at Princess Royal's estate in Gatcombe Park on Feb. 27 after he was detained by her protection officers. Prior to his arrest, he reportedly called the emergency hotline 999 to say that he was going to stab Princess Anne.
According to Gloucestershire Live, Ballinger was out on bail and was supposed to have his appearance in court. However, due to the coronavirus lockdown, his court date was moved to July 17.
But on June 17, Ballinger once again called 999 to reveal his intent to stab Queen Elizabeth's daughter. Police arrested him at his home that very day as well.
In court this week, Ballinger's defendant, Lee Mott, said that his client could not recall that he made threats to Princess Anne in February. According to reports, the police played by the recordings of his previous arrest and Ballinger recognized his voice.
His lawyer said that the stalker was sorry for making threats and saying horrible things to Princess Anne. However, he apparently revealed the reason for stalking the Princess Royal as she was apparently "controlling his satellites" so she would be able to tell Ballinger what to do.
Mott said that Ballinger had medication for his mental health condition. His lawyer was hoping that the case was settled sooner so that he would have gotten more attention for his mental health issues earlier.
Ballinger pleaded guilty to the charges of his February and current arrest. However, the court didn't order the man to be sent to prison. Instead, Ballinger will be undergoing a 12-month program for his mental health problem. The court also banned him from Princess Anne's estate for six months.
This was not the first time Princess Anne was attacked by a stranger. In 1974, the Princess Royal was the victim of an attempted kidnapping and ransom. Her attacker, Ian Ball, fired shots to her car as she was heading to Buckingham Palace.
Princess Anne was 23 years old at that time and was reportedly not unnerved by the man. The bystander who came to her aid, Ronnie Russel, said that the Princess Royal was "very, very, very together" and even told her attacker to leave her and to stop being stupid after he shot her bodyguard.
Russel was able to punch the attacker and held him down until the police arrived. He received a medal from the Queen for helping Princess Anne.
