SACRAMENTO, Dec. 17 – Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, convicted of trying to kill President Ford, was sentenced to life in prison today after several hysterical courtroom outbursts in which she hit a U.S. attorney in the face and demanded that Charles Manson be freed from jail.

In a lengthy statement interrupted frequently by Miss Fromme, U.S. District Court Judge Thomas J. MacBride said, “You deserve punishment equal to the harshness of the deed you attempted.”

Although the sentence is life, the red-haired defendant will be eligible for consideration for parole in 15 years.

MacBride said he was convinced the slavish follower of Manson cannot be rehabilitated and he told her: “The only way to deter you is to separate you from the society from which you already have separated yourself as evidenced by the ‘X’ on your forehead.”

Miss Fromme, 27, and several other female cultists of Manson carved Xs in their foreheads as a symbol of their dedication to Manson during his trial for the 1969 Tate-LaBianca murders. “You, fool,” Miss Fromme shouted at the judge. “I’m just trying to save your lives.”

After the sentence was read, U.S. marshals had to carry the tiny defendant out of the court screaming.

“Quit pushing me,” she yelled as the court doors closed behind her. The final scream was, “You animals.”

MacBride opened court this morning by briefly delaying the sentencing to hear defense motions for dismissal, a new trial and a court investigation of the files of the prosecution.

Defense attorney John Virga contended the prosecution withheld important evidence from him. However, MacBride denied the motions, saying an error had been made but that it was a minor one.

At one point during the motions, Miss Fromme jumped to her feet and shouted, apparently angered over the delay of her finally being able to speak in court, “If you don’t want to hear what I have to say…”

MacBride ordered her to silence, but later during a conference in front of the bench, Miss Fromme hit U.S. Attorney Dwayne Keyes in the face with an apple she had carried into court.

Keyes had just told the judge that Miss Fromme “has shown herself to be a person who would not hesitate to use violence at any time…” when she threw the apple at him.

At that point MacBride told Miss Fromme if there were any more outbursts she would be bound in a wheelchair and gagged.

MacBride said Miss Fromme had submitted 128 pages of handwritten notes to him outlining her philosophy and the reasons for her actions the day she attempted to assassinate Ford in Capitol Park Sept. 5.

The judge said 95 per cent of the written statement was devoted “to a condemnation of society and the defense of Charles Manson and justification for the Tate-Labianca murders.”

The judge continued, “Unfortunately your version of what happened that day (Sept. 5) comes too late. Your explanation, if it is to be believed, is wasted.”

In her statement to the court, Miss Fromme repeated her bizarre concern for the environment, saying: “All of us offend common sense when we destroy the earth as we are doing now.”

In response, MacBride said: “Had John Kennedy, Robert Kennedy or Martin Luther King been alive to live out their lives rather than having fallen at the hands of a person like yourself, they could have accomplished more for our environment and for all of mankind than all the terrorists in the history of the world – you and Charles Manson included.”

Miss Fromme began her statement with, “I want Manson out. I want the world in peace. I stood with a gun and said don’t make me shoot but you are making me shoot.”

She also made several references to her often stated determination to free Manson and the four other convicted followers.

After the sentencing, Virga reiterated his plans to appeal. He said he had several grounds, including his contention the prosecution “suppressed” important evidence in the case. He has 10 days to file the appeal.

Miss Fromme, wearing a green pants suit, walked freely into the federal building this morning, smiling and joking with U.S. marshals.

During her trial she had to be carried into the building everyday. She refused to participate in her defense, blindfolding herself and crossing her arms across her chest.

Early in the nearly three-week trial, MacBride banned Miss Fromme from the courtroom for her vocal outbursts, including one in which she tried to plead guilty and another in which she demanded that Manson be allowed to testify as a defense witness.

During the pre-sentencing hearing, defense attorney John E. Virga called FBI agent Larry Ott to the stand to testify about an interview he had with a prosecution witness, the Rev. James R. Porter, an Episcopalian minister in Gridley.

Suddenly Miss Fromme jumped to her feet and yelled, “If you don’t want to hear what I have to say, what does it matter what Ott has to say?”

MacBride, apparently so flustered by the outburst that he called Miss Fromme “Miss Virga,” ordered her to sit and be quiet. “Forgive me,” Miss Fromme said as she sat down. Virga, as he did during Miss Fromme’s trial, accused the prosecution of “suppressing material evidence.” He said his motions for dismissal, a new trial and a court investigation of the prosecution’s files, were based on the interview with Porter, who gave extensive testimony at Miss Fromme’s trial. Virga contended that during the FBI interview shortly after the attempted assassination of Ford in Capitol Park Sept. 5, Porter said he did not hear any words spoken by Miss Fromme. However, Virga said, during her trial, Porter quoted her as saying, in a tone of extreme disappointment, “It didn’t go off.” Virga also complained that he was not given a copy of the interview until last Thursday, although it should have been presented to him during the trial.

MacBride denied the motions, saying an error had been made, but that it was a minor one.

A jury of eight women and four men found Miss Fromme guilty Nov. 26 after 19 hours of deliberations. She was the first person convicted under a statute, enacted after the assassination of President Kennedy, making it a crime to attempt to kill a president.

The prosecution called 37 witnesses during the trial. The defense called seven, including one of the prosecutors. The defense also showed the jury an unprecedented videotape testimony of Ford, in which he described what happened during the Capitol Park incident.

By MAX MILLER and TED FOURKAS