Man Arrested Near Home of Supreme Court Justice Had a Gun, Wanted to Kill: Officials
Man Arrested Near Home of Supreme Court Justice Had a Gun, Wanted to Kill: Officials

By Zachary Stieber

A California man arrested near the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh on June 8 has been charged with attempted murder.

Nicholas John Roske was arrested with a Glock 17 pistol, a tactical knife, and other items in the early hours of Wednesday in Chevy Chase, Maryland, where Kavanaugh and his family reside, according to court documents obtained by The Epoch Times.

Roske told law enforcement officers following his arrest that he was upset about the recent leak of a Supreme Court draft decision indicating the nation’s top court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, in addition to the May 24 shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

“ROSKE indicated that he believed the Justice that he intended to kill would side with Second Amendment decisions that would loosen gun control laws,” according to an affidavit filed in court by an FBI agent. “ROSKE stated that he began thinking about how to give his life a purpose and decided that he would kill the Supreme Court Justice after finding the Justice’s Montgomery County on the Internet.”

Ruth Sent Us, an activist group, published the address of Kavanaugh and some other justices online after the draft opinion was leaked in early May.

Roske purchased the pistol and other items with the intention of breaking into Kavanaugh’s residence and killing the justice as well as himself.

At approximately 1:05 a.m. on Wednesday, two U.S. deputy marshals spotted a person dressed in black clothing and carrying a backpack and a suitcase exit a taxi that had stopped in front of Kavanaugh’s home. Deputies and other authorities are providing around-the-clock security at the homes of all nine justices following the leak of the draft opinion.

The individual looked at the deputies and walked down the street.

A short time later, Roske called 911 and said he was having suicidal thoughts. He also revealed he had a gun in his suitcase, and that he had traveled from California to kill a Supreme Court justice.

Montgomery County police officers were called and rushed to the scene, where they encountered Roske. He was still on the phone.

Roske was arrested without incident.

Officers took Roske to the nearby police station in Bethesda, a spokesperson for the police told The Epoch Times. The FBI took over the case.

A spokesperson for the Supreme Court said a man was arrested near Kavanaugh’s home and that “the man was armed and made threats against Justice Kavanaugh.”

Roske was charged with a violation of federal law that prohibits assaulting, kidnapping, murdering, or attempting to kidnap, murder, or assault immediate family members of judges or judges themselves.

He faces up to 20 years in prison.

Roske was due to make his initial appearance in court in Greenbelt on Wednesday afternoon. He did not yet have a lawyer.

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