Durbin Meets With Three Federal Judges To Discuss Judicial Security
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement after discussing judicial security with Judge Beth Bloom of the Southern District of Florida, Judge Mark Norris of the Western District of Tennessee, and Judge Esther Salas of the District of New Jersey, whose son was murdered at the family’s home by a former litigant who posed as a deliveryman:
“President Trump is openly threatening judges with over-the-top rhetoric and even calling for their impeachment for ruling against him. Just as bad: Republicans seem to be keeping quiet about—or even enabling—his threats. If President Obama or President Biden had said these things, Republicans would’ve thrown a fit.
“Americans are welcome to disagree with judicial decisions on the merits, but we must all agree that we cannot undermine our Constitution by allowing threats to the officers of our judicial branch in an attempt to weaken it.
“Judges Salas, Bloom, and Norris are helping to shed light on the threats faced by our judges in a heightened political environment, and I thank them for having the courage to speak about their experiences and carry on the legacy of Judge Salas’s son Daniel.”
New reporting found that USMS has seen a spike in threats against federal judges, including 197 federal judges threatened between March 1 and May 27 of this year. One report identified more than 600 posts on social media and right-leaning message boards since February targeting family members of judges who ruled against the Trump Administration—with the posts viewed more than 200 million times. Another report described federal judges and their family members receiving anonymous deliveries to their homes intended to show that those seeking to intimidate the targeted judge know the judge’s address or their family members’ addresses. Some of these deliveries were made using the name of Judge Salas’s son.
The spike in threats coincides with escalating, threatening language by President Trump and his allies, including calls for impeaching judges who don’t rule in the President’s favor.
Durbin has urged Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Patel to investigate the ongoing and increasing threats against federal judges. Durbin asked for a response by May 20, but has yet to receive one.
In 2023, the Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act was signed into law as part of the National Defense Authorization Act. The legislation provided additional intelligence analysts and deputy Marshals to the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) and allowed judges to remove sensitive personal information from government websites and private publications.
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