An armed California man arrested near Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s Maryland home Wednesday allegedly told police officers he wanted to kill Kavanaugh in the wake of the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion in the Mississippi abortion law case that could overturn Roe v. Wade.
Fox News has reported the suspect has been identified as 26-year-old Nicholas John Roske of Simi Valley, California, and had been carrying a gun, knife, and pepper spray when arrested in Montgomery County, Maryland.
The report continued:
Roske was picked up on a nearby street after calling police on 911 to report himself. He did not get to the Kavanaugh home.
Roske told officers on the scene near the Kavanaugh home he was [sic] wanted to kill the justice, according to sources. He is scheduled to have a first appearance in Maryland federal court later Wednesday.
The investigation into the incident is being handled by U.S. Marshals and the Montgomery County Police Department.
“Two people familiar with the investigation said the initial evidence indicates that the man was angry about the leaked draft of an opinion by the Supreme Court signaling that the court is preparing to overturn Roe. v. Wade,” the Washington Post reported.
Independent Supreme Court news analyst SCOTUSblog reported on Twitter a Supreme Court spokesperson confirmed, “At approximately 1:50 a.m. today, a man was arrested near Justice Kavanaugh’s residence. The man was armed and made threats against Justice Kavanaugh. He was transported to Montgomery County Police 2nd District.”
SCOTUS spokesperson confirms reporting by WaPo this morning: "At approximately 1:50 a.m. today, a man was arrested near Justice Kavanaugh’s residence. The man was armed and made threats against Justice Kavanaugh. He was transported to Montgomery County Police 2nd District." https://t.co/1bWOgeTuGx
— SCOTUSblog (@SCOTUSblog) June 8, 2022
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a press conference the alleged actions of the suspect are “obviously behavior that we will not tolerate.”
“Threats of violence and actual violence against the justices of course strike at the heart of our democracy,” Garland said, Fox News reported. “We will do everything we can to prevent them and hold people who do them accountable.”
Garland added he has been accelerating protection at the homes of the Supreme Court justices since last month.
The Court has not yet ruled on the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a challenge to a Mississippi abortion law that could overturn the landmark case of Roe v. Wade, which created a right to abortion in 1973.
Criminal defense attorney and legal analyst Jonathan Turley commented on Twitter “the reckless rhetoric directed at the Court only fuels such extremist threats.”
…Targeting the homes of justices only increases such dangers that unhinged, violent actors will seek to mete out their own retributive justice. Calls for "aggressive protests" at these homes are reckless and wrong. https://t.co/hIY2PHdRsa
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) June 8, 2022
“Targeting the homes of justices only increases such dangers that unhinged, violent actors will seek to mete out their own retributive justice,” Turley added. “Calls for ‘aggressive protests’ at these homes are reckless and wrong.”
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Susan Berry, PhD is national education editor at The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
