An armed man who said he wanted to kill U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh was arrested near the justice’s home in Maryland early Wednesday morning, law enforcement authorities say.
The man, who is from California, was dropped off near Kavanaugh’s home in a taxi before being detained by police. Law enforcement did not indicate how they were tipped off about the threat, CNBC reported. He had a handgun, knife and pepper spray, CNBC said.
The man, described as being in his mid-20s, told police he wanted to kill Kavanaugh.
A Supreme Court spokesperson confirmed the threat, saying in a statement that at “approximately 1:50 a.m. today, a man was arrested near Justice Kavanaugh’s residence.”
#SCOTUS spokeswoman confirms that 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."
— Amy Howe (@AHoweBlogger) June 8, 2022
“The man was armed and made threats against Justice Kavanaugh,” the statement said. “He was transported to Montgomery County Police 2nd District.”
Threats against the justices have increased since a leaked Supreme Court opinion indicated there are a majority of votes on the court to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that legalized abortion nationwide. Kavanaugh was in the majority on that leaked decision.
Two people familiar with the investigation told The Washington Post that the man was angry about the leaked opinion.
The Department of Justice said in May that the U.S. Marshals Service is providing “round-the-clock security” for the justices.
The U.S. Senate passed a bill last month that would protect the Supreme Court justices “if the Marshal determines such protection is necessary.” The bill has yet to receive a vote in the House. It is called the Supreme Court Police Parity Act of 2022.
Legal experts on Wednesday said verbal attacks on the Supreme Court have sparked the physical threats. In May, protesters marched outside the homes of several Supreme Court justices.
“[T]he reckless rhetoric directed at the Court only fuels such extremist threats,” tweeted Jonathan Turley of Georgetown University. “... 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.”
...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
Related:
Several Pro-Life Pregnancy Resource Centers Have Been Vandalized since the SCOTUS Draft Opinion Leak
Abortion Supporters Protest Outside of Justices' Homes: 'I'm Not Going to Be Civil'
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Chip Somodevilla/Staff
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
