WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), and John Cornyn (R-Texas) today introduced the Countering Threats and Attacks on Our Judges Act, which would establish a State Judicial Threat Intelligence and Resource Center to provide technical assistance, training, and threat monitoring for state and local judges and court personnel.
“Public servants should be able to do their jobs free from threats to themselves or their families – and that includes our state and local judges,” said Senator Coons. “Our nation has seen increasing political violence that has too often ended in tragedy – threatening those just trying to serve their country and threatening our democratic system built on respect for the rule of law. I’m proud this bipartisan bill unanimously passed the Senate last year and I look forward to working with my colleagues to get this bill to the president’s desk.”
“With threats against judges and their families increasing at an alarming rate, more must be done to protect them,” said Senator Cornyn. “This legislation would establish a much-needed resource center to identify and respond to bad actors, ensuring our nation’s courts and the Americans who work in them every day are safe.”
“Every day, judges make difficult and deeply personal decisions affecting the lives of citizens in their states,” said Delaware Supreme Court Chief Justice Collins J. Seitz, Jr. “State court judges desperately need a nation-wide resource to address the growth in threats and violence directed at the state courts, their judges, and the public servants who make their work possible.”
In addition to Senators Coons and Cornyn, the bill is also co-sponsored by Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.)
“Judges perform a critical community service at every level of our justice system,” said Senator Moran. “Regardless of how a judge rules on a case, any form of harassment or intimidation is unacceptable. In response to growing threats and attacks against members of the judiciary, this legislation would provide needed resources and support to local law enforcement tasked with protecting judges and courthouses.”
“Online mobs have increasingly lobbed violent threats against judges, including in Rhode Island, for ruling against the Trump administration. Judges and court officials must be able to conduct their work without fearing for their lives or their family’s safety,” said Senator Whitehouse. “This timely bipartisan bill would bolster security at courthouses and judges’ homes to help protect the integrity of our judicial system. We also need to make sure that orchestration of threats is properly investigated.”
“We’re seeing an alarming surge of dangerous threats and actions targeting judges across this nation – stoking the flames of violence towards public servants and their families,” said Senator Shaheen. “Our bipartisan legislation offers a commonsense solution to this troubling trend by establishing a State Judicial Threat Intelligence and Resource Center to implement enhanced security measures to keep judges, their families and their staff out of harm’s way.”
U.S. Representatives Lucy McBath (D-Ga.-06) and Michael McCaul (R-Texas-10) introduced companion legislation in the House.
The Countering Threats and Attacks on Our Judges Act would create a State Judicial Threat Intelligence and Resource Center to:
The legislation is supported by the Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ), National Center for State Courts (NCSC), Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA), National District Attorneys Association (NDAA), Council of Chief Judges of the State Courts of Appeal (CCJSCA), National Association for Presiding Judges and Court Executive Officers (NAPCO), American Judges Association (AJA), and National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ).
“Across the nation we have seen threats on and attacks against state and local judges increase, including near-fatal attacks on state judges in Texas and Ohio and attacks on or threats against state judges in California, Idaho, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, New York, Rhode Island, and Wyoming,” said Chief Justice Matthew Durrant, Utah Supreme Court Chief Justice and President of the Conference of Chief Justices. “We urge the swift passage of the Countering Threats and Attacks on Our Judges Act, which is an important step in protecting our state and local judges and, by extension, the rule of law.”
“This legislation is vital to the security of every state judge in America,” said National Center for State Courts President Elizabeth T. Clement. “We urge Congress to take action today to help keep our judges safe.”
“Unlike the federal judiciary, the 30,000 state and local judicial officers across the nation lack a resource center on judicial security, standardized incident reporting, and access to threat evaluations,” said Regina deChabert Petersen, Administrator of Courts for the Judiciary of the Virgin Islands and President of the Conference of State Court Administrators. “The Countering Threats and Attacks on Our Judges Act would help protect our local and state court personnel by providing them with technical assistance, increased threat tracking, and physical security assessments for court buildings and their homes.
“As public servants, prosecutors deserve to fulfill their duties free from fear or threats. The Countering Threats and Attacks on Our Judges Act is important legislation as it provides the necessary support to keep our state and local judges, prosecutors, and court staff and their families safe, preserves the rule of law, and safeguards our judicial systems,” said Nelson Bunn, Executive Director of the National District Attorneys Association.
A one-pager on the bill is available here.
The text of the bill is available here.