"The data's really clear. There has been a pronounced uptick in threats against judges and threats against their families, the doxing, the swatting, the so-called pizza doxing that at least one of you has now discussed publicly, the impeachment efforts and the insults coming from the highest government officials. Judge Lasnik, your colleague, Judge John Coughenour, has reported a swatting attack in which someone sent sheriff's deputies to his home just days after he blocked Trump's order ending birthright citizenship last year."
"What is different in 2026? Is it the scope? Is it the scale? Is it technology? Is it the tone of these threats, the nature of the threats? Judges have been contending with threats of violence, actual violence, doxing, impeachment and removal, harassment of their families, and the flagrant refusal to obey their orders in unprecedented numbers since Donald Trump took office a second time."
"Some of the most unremitting and personal threats, of course, have come from the president himself and his Justice Department. But judges also have ethical obligations that typically prevent them from speaking directly to these ongoing threats, as well as an orientation toward maintaining silence on public political matters. As a result, some of the worst threats have gone unanswered, or been minimized, or been swept aside under the banner of "free speech.""
"In the meantime, the chill on the bench is real, as is the fear."
Threats against American judges have risen markedly, including doxing, swatting, and threats aimed at judges’ families. Violence has occurred, including the killing of a judge’s son in her home by a disgruntled litigant. The threats have also included impeachment efforts, removal attempts, insults from top government officials, and flagrant refusal to obey court orders. Some threats have come directly from the president and the Justice Department. Judges face ethical obligations that limit direct public responses and encourage silence on political matters, so some threats go unanswered, minimized, or treated as protected speech. Fear and a chill on judicial decision-making are described as real.
#judicial-security #threats-and-harassment #doxing-and-swatting #rule-of-law #political-pressure-on-courts
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