Latest news with #Republican-nominated
31-07-2025
- Politics
Federal judges detail rise in threats, 'pizza doxings,' as Trump ramps up criticism
In 2020, a disgruntled litigant posing as a deliveryman opened fire at the New Jersey home of District Judge Esther Salas, killing her 20-year-old son Daniel Anderl. Five years later, as President Donald Trump steps up his criticism of federal judges who have blocked some of his agenda, dozens of judges have had unsolicited pizzas delivered to their homes, often in Daniel Anderl's name. District Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. of Rhode Island, who stalled Trump's initial round of across-the-board spending cuts, is among those who received pizzas in Anderl's name. His courtroom also has been flooded by threatening calls, including one profanity-laced one that called for his assassination. McConnell, Jr. played a recording of the call during an unusual discussion Thursday where multiple federal judges discussed threats they have received — a notable conversation because judges usually only speak publicly from the bench and through their rulings, and rarely if ever, about personal threats and attacks. Salas and others said the number of attacks has escalated in recent months. Without using his name, Salas called on Trump and his allies to tone down the rhetoric and stop demonizing the judiciary, for fear of what more could happen. 'We're used to being appealed. But keep it on the merits, stop demonizing us,' Salas said. 'They're inviting people to do us harm.' Thursday's event was sponsored by Speak up for Justice, a nonpartisan group supporting an independent judiciary. District Judge John C. Coughenour of Washington recalled having a police SWAT team called to his home to respond to a false report of an attack after Coughenour in January halted Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of people in the country illegally. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik of Washington also had pizzas delivered in Anderl's name to both his home and those of his two adult children, each in different cities, after an article in which he was quoted as being critical of attacks on judges was picked up by a television station in the Pacific Northwest, where he hears cases. 'The message to me was 'we know where you live, we know where your kids live, and they could end up dead like Daniel Anderl did,'' Lasnik said in an interview. Salas says U.S. Marshals have told her of more than 100 cases of so-called 'pizza doxings,' unwanted deliveries to the homes of federal judges and their families, since 2024, with most occurring this year. Salas added that she's heard of additional cases targeting state judges in states ranging from Colorado to Florida, incidents that wouldn't be tracked by Marshals, who protect federal judges. 'This is not some random, silly act, this is a targeted, concentrated, coordinated attack on judges,' Salas said in an interview, 'and yet we don't hear any condemnation from Washington.' Salas, nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, in 2022 was critical of protests at the homes of Republican-nominated Supreme Court justices who revoked women's right to have an abortion, which were followed by the arrest of a man at the home of Justice Brett Kavanaugh who said he was there to assassinate the justice. Salas said both sides of the political aisle have used worrying rhetoric about judges, but it's reached a new peak since Trump took office. 'I've often referred to it as a bonfire that I believe the current administration is throwing accelerants on,' Salas said. Trump himself has led the charge against judges, often going after them by name on social media. He's said judges who've ruled against his administration are 'sick,' 'very dangerous' and 'lunatic.' Trump's allies have amplified his rhetoric and called for impeaching judges who rule against the president or simply disobeying their rulings. Earlier this year, several judges at the panel noted, Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee had a 'wanted' poster of judges who'd crossed the president hanging outside his congressional office. Lasnik said many judges appointed by presidents of both parties have told him of concerns but are nervous about discussing the issue openly. 'A lot of them don't know how to speak up and are afraid of crossing a line somewhere where they would get a judicial complaint like judge Boasberg did,' Lasnik said, referring to District Judge James E. Boasberg of D.C., who infuriated the Trump administration by finding they likely committed criminal contempt by disobeying his order to turn around a deportation flight to El Salvador. Though Chief Justice John Roberts has come to Boasberg's defense, Trump's Department of Justice this week filed a complaint against Boasberg over comments he made at a judicial conference that other judges worry the Trump administration won't obey their orders. Last month, Trump's Justice Department took the extraordinary step of suing every federal judge in Maryland over rules governing how they handle immigration cases. More than five dozen judges who've ruled against Trump are receiving enhanced online protection, including scrubbing their identifying information from websites, according to two Trump-appointed judges who wrote Congress urging more funding for judicial security. In 2022, Congress passed a law named after Daniel Anderl allowing judges to sue internet sites to take down identifying information.
San Francisco Chronicle
31-07-2025
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Federal judges detail rise in threats, 'pizza doxings,' as Trump ramps up criticism
In 2020, a disgruntled litigant posing as a deliveryman opened fire at the New Jersey home of District Judge Esther Salas, killing her 20-year-old son Daniel Anderl. Five years later, as President Donald Trump steps up hiscriticism of federal judges who have blocked some of his agenda, dozens of judges have had unsolicited pizzas delivered to their homes, often in Daniel Anderl's name. District Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. of Rhode Island, who stalled Trump's initial round of across-the-board spending cuts, is among those who received pizzas in Anderl's name. His courtroom also has been flooded by threatening calls, including one profanity-laced one that called for his assassination. McConnell, Jr. played a recording of the call during an unusual discussion Thursday where multiple federal judges discussed threats they have received — a notable conversation because judges usually only speak publicly from the bench and through their rulings, and rarely if ever, about personal threats and attacks. Salas and others said the number of attacks has escalated in recent months. Without using his name, Salas called on Trump and his allies to tone down the rhetoric and stop demonizing the judiciary, for fear of what more could happen. 'We're used to being appealed. But keep it on the merits, stop demonizing us,' Salas said. 'They're inviting people to do us harm.' Thursday's event was sponsored by Speak up for Justice, a nonpartisan group supporting an independent judiciary. District Judge John C. Coughenour of Washington recalled having a police SWAT team called to his home to respond to a false report of an attack after Coughenour in January halted Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of people in the country illegally. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik of Washington also had pizzas delivered in Anderl's name to both his home and those of his two adult children, each in different cities, after an article in which he was quoted as being critical of attacks on judges was picked up by a television station in the Pacific Northwest, where he hears cases. 'The message to me was 'we know where you live, we know where your kids live, and they could end up dead like Daniel Anderl did,'' Lasnik said in an interview. Salas says U.S. Marshals have told her of more than 100 cases of so-called 'pizza doxings,' unwanted deliveries to the homes of federal judges and their families, since 2024, with most occurring this year. Salas added that she's heard of additional cases targeting state judges in states ranging from Colorado to Florida, incidents that wouldn't be tracked by Marshals, who protect federal judges. 'This is not some random, silly act, this is a targeted, concentrated, coordinated attack on judges,' Salas said in an interview, 'and yet we don't hear any condemnation from Washington.' Salas, nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, in 2022 was critical of protests at the homes of Republican-nominated Supreme Court justices who revoked women's right to have an abortion, which were followed by the arrest of a man at the home of Justice Brett Kavanaugh who said he was there to assassinate the justice. Salas said both sides of the political aisle have used worrying rhetoric about judges, but it's reached a new peak since Trump took office. 'I've often referred to it as a bonfire that I believe the current administration is throwing accelerants on,' Salas said. Trump himself has led the charge against judges, often going after them by name on social media. He's said judges who've ruled against his administration are 'sick,' 'very dangerous' and 'lunatic.' Trump's allies have amplified his rhetoric and called for impeaching judges who rule against the president or simply disobeying their rulings. Earlier this year, several judges at the panel noted, Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee had a 'wanted' poster of judges who'd crossed the president hanging outside his congressional office. Lasnik said many judges appointed by presidents of both parties have told him of concerns but are nervous about discussing the issue openly. 'A lot of them don't know how to speak up and are afraid of crossing a line somewhere where they would get a judicial complaint like judge Boasberg did,' Lasnik said, referring to District Judge James E. Boasberg of D.C., who infuriated the Trump administration by finding they likely committed criminal contempt by disobeying his order to turn around a deportation flight to El Salvador. Though Chief Justice John Roberts has come to Boasberg's defense, Trump's Department of Justice this week filed a complaint against Boasberg over comments he made at a judicial conference that other judges worry the Trump administration won't obey their orders. Last month, Trump's Justice Department took the extraordinary step of suing every federal judge in Maryland over rules governing how they handle immigration cases. More than five dozen judges who've ruled against Trump are receiving enhanced online protection, including scrubbing their identifying information from websites, according to two Trump-appointed judges who wrote Congress urging more funding for judicial security. In 2022, Congress passed a law named after Daniel Anderl allowing judges to sue internet sites to take down identifying information.
Hamilton Spectator
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Federal judges detail rise in threats, ‘pizza doxings,' as Trump ramps up criticism
In 2020, a disgruntled litigant posing as a deliveryman opened fire at the New Jersey home of District Judge Esther Salas, killing her 20-year-old son Daniel Anderl. Five years later, as President Donald Trump steps up hiscriticism of federal judges who have blocked some of his agenda, dozens of judges have had unsolicited pizzas delivered to their homes, often in Daniel Anderl's name. District Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. of Rhode Island, who stalled Trump's initial round of across-the-board spending cuts, is among those who received pizzas in Anderl's name. His courtroom also has been flooded by threatening calls, including one profanity-laced one that called for his assassination. McConnell, Jr. played a recording of the call during an unusual discussion Thursday where multiple federal judges discussed threats they have received — a notable conversation because judges usually only speak publicly from the bench and through their rulings, and rarely if ever, about personal threats and attacks. Salas and others said the number of attacks has escalated in recent months. Without using his name, Salas called on Trump and his allies to tone down the rhetoric and stop demonizing the judiciary, for fear of what more could happen. 'We're used to being appealed. But keep it on the merits, stop demonizing us,' Salas said. 'They're inviting people to do us harm.' Thursday's event was sponsored by Speak up for Justice, a nonpartisan group supporting an independent judiciary. District Judge John C. Coughenour of Washington recalled having a police SWAT team called to his home to respond to a false report of an attack after Coughenour in January halted Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of people in the country illegally. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik of Washington also had pizzas delivered in Anderl's name to both his home and those of his two adult children, each in different cities, after an article in which he was quoted as being critical of attacks on judges was picked up by a television station in the Pacific Northwest, where he hears cases. 'The message to me was 'we know where you live, we know where your kids live, and they could end up dead like Daniel Anderl did,'' Lasnik said in an interview. Salas says U.S. Marshals have told her of more than 100 cases of so-called 'pizza doxings,' unwanted deliveries to the homes of federal judges and their families, since 2024, with most occurring this year. Salas added that she's heard of additional cases targeting state judges in states ranging from Colorado to Florida, incidents that wouldn't be tracked by Marshals, who protect federal judges. 'This is not some random, silly act, this is a targeted, concentrated, coordinated attack on judges,' Salas said in an interview, 'and yet we don't hear any condemnation from Washington.' Salas, nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, in 2022 was critical of protests at the homes of Republican-nominated Supreme Court justices who revoked women's right to have an abortion, which were followed by the arrest of a man at the home of Justice Brett Kavanaugh who said he was there to assassinate the justice. Salas said both sides of the political aisle have used worrying rhetoric about judges, but it's reached a new peak since Trump took office. 'I've often referred to it as a bonfire that I believe the current administration is throwing accelerants on,' Salas said. Trump himself has led the charge against judges, often going after them by name on social media. He's said judges who've ruled against his administration are 'sick,' 'very dangerous' and 'lunatic.' Trump's allies have amplified his rhetoric and called for impeaching judges who rule against the president or simply disobeying their rulings. Earlier this year, several judges at the panel noted, Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee had a 'wanted' poster of judges who'd crossed the president hanging outside his congressional office. Lasnik said many judges appointed by presidents of both parties have told him of concerns but are nervous about discussing the issue openly. 'A lot of them don't know how to speak up and are afraid of crossing a line somewhere where they would get a judicial complaint like judge Boasberg did,' Lasnik said, referring to District Judge James E. Boasberg of D.C., who infuriated the Trump administration by finding they likely committed criminal contempt by disobeying his order to turn around a deportation flight to El Salvador. Though Chief Justice John Roberts has come to Boasberg's defense , Trump's Department of Justice this week filed a complaint against Boasberg over comments he made at a judicial conference that other judges worry the Trump administration won't obey their orders. Last month, Trump's Justice Department took the extraordinary step of suing every federal judge in Maryland over rules governing how they handle immigration cases. More than five dozen judges who've ruled against Trump are receiving enhanced online protection, including scrubbing their identifying information from websites, according to two Trump-appointed judges who wrote Congress urging more funding for judicial security. In 2022, Congress passed a law named after Daniel Anderl allowing judges to sue internet sites to take down identifying information. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Winnipeg Free Press
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Federal judges detail rise in threats, ‘pizza doxxings,' as Trump ramps up criticism
In 2020, a disgruntled litigant posing as a deliveryman opened fire at the New Jersey home of District Judge Esther Salas, killing her 20-year-old son Daniel Anderl. Five years later, as President Donald Trump steps up hiscriticism of federal judges who have blocked some of his agenda, dozens of judges have had unsolicited pizzas delivered to their homes, often in Daniel Anderl's name. District Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. of Rhode Island, who stalled Trump's initial round of across-the-board spending cuts, is among those who received pizzas in Anderl's name. His courtroom also has been flooded by threatening calls, including one profanity-laced one that called for his assassination. McConnell, Jr. played a recording of the call during an unusual discussion Thursday where multiple federal judges discussed threats they have received — a notable conversation because judges usually only speak publicly from the bench and through their rulings, and rarely if ever, about personal threats and attacks. Salas and others said the number of attacks has escalated in recent months. Without using his name, Salas called on Trump and his allies to tone down the rhetoric and stop demonizing the judiciary, for fear of what more could happen. 'We're used to being appealed. But keep it on the merits, stop demonizing us,' Salas said. 'They're inviting people to do us harm.' Thursday's event was sponsored by Speak up for Justice, a nonpartisan group supporting an independent judiciary. District Judge John C. Coughenour of Washington recalled having a police SWAT team called to his home to respond to a false report of an attack after Coughenour in January halted Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of people in the country illegally. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik of Washington also had pizzas delivered in Anderl's name to both his home and those of his two adult children, each in different cities, after an article in which he was quoted as being critical of attacks on judges was picked up by a television station in the Pacific Northwest, where he hears cases. 'The message to me was 'we know where you live, we know where your kids live, and they could end up dead like Daniel Anderl did,'' Lasnik said in an interview. Salas says U.S. Marshals have told her of more than 100 cases of so-called 'pizza doxxings,' unwanted deliveries to the homes of federal judges and their families, since 2024, with most occurring this year. Salas added that she's heard of additional cases targeting state judges in states ranging from Colorado to Florida, incidents that wouldn't be tracked by Marshals, who protect federal judges. 'This is not some random, silly act, this is a targeted, concentrated, coordinated attack on judges,' Salas said in an interview, 'and yet we don't hear any condemnation from Washington.' Salas, nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, in 2022 was critical of protests at the homes of Republican-nominated Supreme Court justices who revoked women's right to have an abortion, which were followed by the arrest of a man at the home of Justice Brett Kavanaugh who said he was there to assassinate the justice. Salas said both sides of the political aisle have used worrying rhetoric about judges, but it's reached a new peak since Trump took office. 'I've often referred to it as a bonfire that I believe the current administration is throwing accelerants on,' Salas said. Trump himself has led the charge against judges, often going after them by name on social media. He's said judges who've ruled against his administration are 'sick,' 'very dangerous' and 'lunatic.' Trump's allies have amplified his rhetoric and called for impeaching judges who rule against the president or simply disobeying their rulings. Earlier this year, several judges at the panel noted, Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee had a 'wanted' poster of judges who'd crossed the president hanging outside his congressional office. Lasnik said many judges appointed by presidents of both parties have told him of concerns but are nervous about discussing the issue openly. 'A lot of them don't know how to speak up and are afraid of crossing a line somewhere where they would get a judicial complaint like judge Boasberg did,' Lasnik said, referring to District Judge James E. Boasberg of D.C., who infuriated the Trump administration by finding they likely committed criminal contempt by disobeying his order to turn around a deportation flight to El Salvador. Though Chief Justice John Roberts has come to Boasberg's defense, Trump's Department of Justice this week filed a complaint against Boasberg over comments he made at a judicial conference that other judges worry the Trump administration won't obey their orders. Last month, Trump's Justice Department took the extraordinary step of suing every federal judge in Maryland over rules governing how they handle immigration cases. More than five dozen judges who've ruled against Trump are receiving enhanced online protection, including scrubbing their identifying information from websites, according to two Trump-appointed judges who wrote Congress urging more funding for judicial security. In 2022, Congress passed a law named after Daniel Anderl allowing judges to sue internet sites to take down identifying information.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
At least 15 people convicted of Lansing area murders must be resentenced
LANSING — At least 15 murderers convicted in Lansing area courts will be entitled to resentencing now that the Michigan Supreme Court has ruled that mandatory life prison sentences for 19- and 20-year-olds are unconstitutional because the brains of people that age aren't fully developed. A dozen of those offenders were convicted in Ingham County, while another three were convicted in Eaton County, local officials said. "We're locating all of the old files so we can start identifying the (victims') next of kin, sit down with them and tell them what's going on," said Ingham County Prosecutor John Dewane, a Democrat who expressed disappointment with the court's April 10 ruling. "Imagine bringing them in and telling them, '30 years ago you thought you had closure, and now you don't.'" In a 5-2 opinion, the state's highest court ruled the mandatory sentence of life without parole for first-degree murder constitutes cruel or unusual punishment for offenders who are 19 and 20 and violate the state consitution. "Mandatorily condemning such offenders to die in prison, without first considering the attributes of youth that late adolescents and juveniles share, no longer comports with the 'evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society,'" Justice Elizabeth Welch wrote in the majority opinion. MORE: Lansing teen gets decades in prison for 'shooting for sport' of innocent bystander Late adolescents are "widely recognized" as being more susceptible to "negative outside influences" and tend to give less consideration to consequences of a decision, Welch wrote. The ruling expands the courts' findings in an earlier case regarding 18-year-old defendants to include those who were 19 and 20 when they killed somebody. The justices made it retroactive, meaning all 19- and 20-year-old offenders who received life without parole over the years can petition for resentencing. The five justices nominated by the Democratic Party formed the majority. The two Republican-nominated justices opposed it, with Chief Justice Elizabeth Clement writing a dissenting opinion. If the neuroscience evidence cited by the majority justifies changing sentencing policy, it should be done by the Legislature, not the court, Clement wrote. First-degree murder is "arguably the gravest offense" in Michigan and deserves the most severe sentence, she said. "Indeed, the opinion reads less like a judicial decision interpreting our Constitution and more like an amicus brief from a behavioral-science institute," the dissenting opinion said. "Courts should not reshape the law with every shift in scientific consensus, especially when it is the Michigan Constitution that is the subject of reshaping." The decision impacts 579 defendants who received mandatory life sentences, according to the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan, which released a statement criticizing the ruling. More than 400 of those cases were in populous Wayne County. 'Prosecutors are concerned about the further traumatization of the survivors and loved ones of victims ...," Midland County Prosecutor J. Dee Brooks, PAAM's president, said in the statement. Brooks noted that prosecutors had spent the previous few days attending vigils and community events marking National Crime Victims' Rights Week. "We've listened to survivors say they need certainty and finality in the sentences of the convicted criminals who took the lives of their loved ones," he said. "They have described the retraumatization that results from the never-ending litigation of these cases." Brooks also said the resulting resentencing hearings will burden many prosecutor's offices already struggling to manage caseloads without enough staff. Lansing-area prosecutors also were not happy with the Supreme Court's ruling. Eaton County Prosecutor Douglas Lloyd, a Republican, said he had just met with the family of a man who was murdered in 1986. The defendants were 18 and 19 at the time, and the younger defendant was just 10 days shy of his 19th birthday, he said. He had to tell the family of the man who was killed that the promises they received about never having to see the defendant again turned out to be false. "That's a great conversation to have during a Crime Victims Rights Week," Lloyd said. "They're going to ask why what they were told 40 years ago doesn't matter anymore? What am I supposed to say? Promises were made and promises weren't kept... I ripped open a Band-Aid, and they are going to be retraumatized again." The most recent Supreme Court ruling impacts three Eaton County cases involving 19- and 20-year-old defendants, with the most recent from 2017, Lloyd said. Three others were covered by the previous ruling involving 18-year-olds, one of whom has since been re-sentenced to a term of years, he said. Lloyd also said he disagrees with the high court's reasoning that 19- or 20-year-olds are too immature to understand "the difference between right and wrong." They are old enough to get a college loan and do most everything an adult can do, "except for the fact they murdered someone," he said. Prosecutors can seek to have a youthful offender re-sentenced to life without parole, but the standard of proof is high, and such a sentence should be rare, the high court said. Prosecutor have 90 days from the date of the opinion to file such a motion, the justices ruled. Ingham County's Dewane said some of the offenders subject to the ruling have been in prison for so long that they will almost immediately be eligible for parole. The high court has held that an appropriate sentence for 18- to 20-year-olds should be 25 years to 40 years on the minimum and at least 60 years on the maximum. "I'm disappointed with the ruling," Dewane said. "I believe we are continuing to erode victims rights while providing more rights for the accused." Clinton County Prosecutor Tony Spagnuolo did not immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment on Thursday. Contact Ken Palmer at kpalmer@ Follow him on X @KBPalm_lsj. This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: 15 people convicted of Lansing area murders must be resentenced
