Federal Grand Jury Indicts Man Who Tried to Assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh

Erin Schaff/The New York Times via AP, Pool

A federal grand jury has indicted the California man who sought to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh last week. Nicholas John Roske, 26, is being charged with a single count of attempting to murder a Justice of the United States, the Associated Press reports.

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Prosecutors accuse Roske of traveling from Simi Valley, California, to Kavanaugh’s home in Chevy Chase, Maryland, to carry out the deed. He pulled up to the judge’s home in a taxi on June 8 shortly after 1 a.m. with a suitcase carrying a firearm and ammunition, a tactical chest rig along with pepper spray, and a knife. He also had other tools like a flashlight and burglary implements. Prosecutors claim he planned to commit suicide after the murder. Police arrested Roske after he called 911 to tell law enforcement what he was planning to do.

The alleged, would-be assassin told law enforcement that he was angry about the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion indicating that Roe v. Wade was likely to be overturned. He was also upset about the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, and felt Kavanaugh would seek to loosen gun control laws, according to the indictment.

Two U.S. Marshals saw Roske when he exited the cab near the justice’s house. But it was only when Roske called 911 that law enforcement arrested him. He decided to phone the police after a text message exchange with his sister, who persuaded him to surrender himself to the authorities. He told investigators that he found Kavanaugh’s address online. His attorney, a federal public defender, has not made a public statement regarding his client yet.

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The indictment comes after the House finally voted to provide more security to Supreme Court justices and their families. Democrats in the lower chamber originally stalled the process until they finally put the matter to a vote earlier this week. The incident follows federal authorities warning about the likelihood of pro-abortion violence carried out by far-leftist activists. So far, there have been about 59 attacks on pro-life organization offices.

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