Republican senators are asking Attorney General Merrick Garland why the Justice Department hasn’t prosecuted any of the protesters outside of Supreme Court justices’ homes in violation of federal law.
In a letter Wednesday to Mr. Garland, they warned that the threat “is only escalating,” referring to a California man arrested last week on an attempted murder charge after he traveled to the home of Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh with plans to kill him.
“We continue to be baffled over the lack of prosecutions under Title 18, Section 1507 of the U.S. Code. We understand it is the policy of the Justice Department not to discuss any pending or potential investigations, but this is an urgent matter of national importance,” they wrote in the letter.
Their letter comes as a progressive group has urged protesters to appear outside the school where Justice Amy Coney Barrett sends her children.
The federal law cited by the senators bans protests outside of judges’ homes with the intent to influence pending decisions.
“While judges serve a public office, the principle of judicial independence means that their deliberations should be free from influence outside the courtroom,” the senators wrote. “This means especially that their deliberations should be free from harassment and intimidation, nowhere more than in their homes where their families reside.”
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Protesters have been gathering outside GOP-appointed justices’ homes since last month, when a leaked draft opinion indicated the high court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that gave women a national right to abortion up until viability.
The justices are weighing Mississippi’s ban on abortion at 15 weeks in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
The official ruling is expected to be released by the end of June.
A spokesperson at the Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
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