ICYMI: Judges Facing Threats and Intimidation Over Rulings Against Trump Administration
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MARCH 20, 2025
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Yesterday, the New York Times reported that federal judges are facing increasing intimidation online when they rule against the Trump administration, and many are “worried that online threats…may lead to real-world violence.” Already, the intimidation has led to “bomb threats, anonymous calls to dispatch police SWAT teams to home addresses, [and] even the delivery of pizzas”–all of which send a threatening message to the recipients.
As district judges have been faced with the first legal challenges against the Trump administration’s executive actions, many have become targets of Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and the MAGA far-right. Some Republicans in the House have introduced baseless impeachment articles against judges who have defended our Constitution against the outlandish and clearly illegal actions of the administration.
“Judges should not face threats of impeachment, violence, or worse, simply for doing their jobs and upholding their oaths to the rule of law and Constitution,” said Demand Justice Interim Executive Director Maggie Jo Buchanan. “Criticism and public discourse around rulings is a part of our democracy–threats and intimidation are not.”
Last week, two federal senior judges spoke out about Congress’s failure to increase funds for judicial security as requested by the Judicial Conference. Senior Judges Richard Sullivan and Jeffrey Sutton said that Congress is not allocating the Conference as much as they need for security measures that would keep judges safe from increasing threats and violence.
See below for more stories about the growing threats against judges and judicial independence:
Judges Fear for Their Safety Amid a Wave of Threats: “At a moment when the judiciary is weighing pivotal decisions on the legality of Trump administration policies, the potential for violence against judges seems to be rising…Court watchers say that singling out individual judges who rule against the administration poses a unique danger, both for the judges themselves and for a judicial system that relies on their fearless impartiality.” [New York Times, 3/19/25]
House GOP moves swiftly to impeach judge targeted by Trump: “GOP lawmakers have unleashed an unprecedented flood of long-shot impeachment articles aimed at federal judges who are standing in the way of the president’s agenda.” [Axios, 3/18/25]
Judges threatened with impeachment, bombs for ruling against Trump agenda: “Lower court judges have faced online attacks for their early rulings on Musk’s DOGE team, efforts to restore government web pages and the freeze on foreign aid.” [NPR, 3/14/25]
US judiciary warns of threats amid ‘concerning’ calls to impeach judges: “U.S. marshals have warned judges of unusually high threat levels, according to several judges. Security has been bolstered for some judges assigned cases over Trump administration initiatives, Reuters reported.” [Reuters, 3/11/25]
Federal judges raise alarm about security threats and impeachment calls: “Musk and other prominent MAGA voices have pushed for certain judges to be impeached for issuing provisional rulings in cases involving Trump policies before they have been fully litigated…[Judge Sullivan] also said the appropriate response for those who lose cases in the federal trial court is to appeal the decisions, not seek to impeach the judges.” [NBC, 3/11/25]
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