Federal judges describe violent threats amid ‘dehumanizing attacks’ from political leaders
In this PBS NewsHour segment, justice correspondent Ali Rogin interviews two federal judges about the surge in threats against the judiciary. The U.S. Marshals Service reports that security incidents of significant concern jumped nearly 60 percent in fiscal year 2025 and are on pace to climb further. Chief Judge John McConnell of Rhode Island describes threatening voicemails and the doxxing of his family, which he says escalated after he temporarily blocked the administration’s freeze on federal funding — and an unsolicited pizza delivery placed under the name of Daniel Anderl, the son of Judge Esther Salas, who was murdered at the family’s home in 2020. Salas, who also appears in the segment, says weaponizing her son’s name is meant to intimidate judges and erode judicial independence, and points to a DHS general counsel’s social media post listing judges as an example of officials dehumanizing the bench. Both judges argue that rhetoric from political leaders directly drives the threat level and call for criticism to run through appeals rather than personal attacks, while noting that Justices Barrett and Kagan have testified to Congress about security needs.