Someone had tipped off police that the man could potentially pose a threat to Kavanaugh, the sources told the publication, and the man was stopped on a street near Kavanaugh’s Montgomery County residence. He did not enter Kavanaugh’s property, the report said.
The Washington Post reported that initial evidence suggests the man was angry over recent mass shootings and reacted to a leaked draft opinion indicating that the Supreme Court would overturn Roe v. Wade.
“This is why leaks are dangerous. This is why doxxing justices is a bad idea. This is why justices’ homes should be off limits,” tweeted Judicial Crisis Network’s Carrie Severino.
“This is why the Court must release the Dobbs opinion as soon as possible,” she added. “This is not, to quote the Chief Justice, ‘business as usual’ at the Court. The threat to the justices is not theoretical. Until the opinion is finally released, the justices are in grave danger.”
Severino called on Biden to “stop appeasing the radicals” in his party, emphasizing that “protests belong in the public square, not at justices’ private homes.”
“Will you finally condemn them?” she asked.
A May 13 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) memo obtained by Axios revealed that government officials are investigating threats to the justices, the clerks, to places of worship, and to abortion clinics.
These threats “are likely to persist and may increase leading up to and following the issuing of the Court’s official ruling,” the memo said.
Axios reported that the memo attempts to link the pro-life movement to white supremacy, highlighting pro-life violence in the past. But the memo emphasizes that the extremist acts might come from pro-abortion individuals.
“The mere advocacy of political or social positions, political activism, use of strong rhetoric, or generalized philosophic embrace of violent tactics does not constitute domestic violent extremism or illegal activity and is constitutionally protected,” the memo adds, according to Axios.
Many on the right have suggested that the draft opinion was most likely leaked by a progressive Supreme Court clerk in an effort to intimidate the court and change its decision. Following the leak conservative activists and legal experts had quickly called for the Supreme Court to release its decision on Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
And in an early May editorial, the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board expressed concerns that an “abortion fanatic” might “commit an act of violence” in an effort to subvert the court’s expected decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
“One question is how fast the Court should now move to publish its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization,” the board said. “There’s an argument for getting it out fast to make it a fait accompli.”
“Politico said the Alito draft was circulated in February, so the Justices have had ample time to absorb it and respond,” it continued. “We hate to say this, but some abortion fanatic could decide to commit an act of violence to stop a 5-4 ruling. It’s an awful thought, but we live in fanatical times.”
