A Massachusetts woman has been jailed for six months after a 2022 incident in which she released a swarm of bees on police officers executing an eviction notice at her friend’s property.
A jury at a Springfield, Mass., court, found Rebecca Rorie Woods, 59, guilty of four counts of simple assault and battery and two counts of reckless assault on April 17, almost four years after she drove onto the driveway of a Longmeadow home, towing a flatbed trailer loaded with beehives, and attempted to unleash thousands of bees onto officers with the Hampden County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) who were executing an eviction notice.
She was sentenced on April 17 to six months in jail, according to Hampden County court records.
Woods smashed open boxes full of the insects and flipped them off the trailer, “releasing swarms of highly agitated bees into the area,” police said in a Facebook statement on the day of her sentencing.
The 59-year-old, a housing advocate who has experienced several evictions herself, according to The New York Times and The Guardian, was attempting to protect the home of her friend, an 80-year-old cancer patient, according to an affidavit obtained by the U.S. outlet.
Footage of the incident shared by MassLive catches one deputy yelling, “Hey, hey, hey, she has a truck full of bees,” as his colleagues converse with a person at the door of a large residence.
During the ordeal, “deputies and HCSO staff on scene were stung multiple times,” the police statement said, “including one who suffered stings to the face and head.
“Several members of the team were injured, and one staff member was transported to the hospital.”
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Thousands of bees died as a result of the incident, police said.
Woods wore a beekeeper suit and continued shifting hives towards the home as bees swarmed.
Deputies moved in and arrested her. While she was being detained, Woods directed another person to care for her dog, who remained in the car while the bees were released.
According to the statement, when told that some police on site were allergic to bees, Woods responded, “Oh, you’re allergic? Good.”
Her lawyer, Mary Saldarelli, told the New York Times on Sunday that her client’s words were “a reaction to having your face put down in the pavement and being shoved there and kept there.”
The footage shows Woods being held face-down to the ground by two officers.
“The incident not only put deputies at risk, but also endangered neighbors in the surrounding area—particularly those with severe allergies. Thousands of bees died during the chaotic scene,” it continued.
She ultimately failed at her attempt to stop the eviction, police said.
The case drew attention in August 2025 when Woods fled in the lead-up to her scheduled trial.
She was later found at a motel in Tennessee and arrested there, where she remained for three months after refusing to waive extradition back to Massachusetts.
Woods was eventually returned to her home state after a Governor’s Warrant was issued and placed in the custody of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, a neighbouring jurisdiction to Hampden County.
“This was unlike anything our team has ever experienced,” Sheriff Nick Cocchi said of the incident and ensuing circumstances.
“Our deputies were carrying out a lawful court order and were met with a deliberate act that put lives in danger. We are grateful the jury recognized the seriousness of what occurred and the risk it posed to our staff and the community,” he continued.
Woods was sentenced to six months in jail, but Saldarelli told the New York Times that because Woods had already been held without bail for months, she would likely spend only one or two more weeks behind bars.
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