WASHINGTON — Two senior federal judges on Tuesday raised the alarm about the increase in violent threats against members of the judiciary and expressed concerns about calls to impeach judges over the rulings they make.
Judge Richard Sullivan and Judge Jeffrey Sutton, both Republican-appointed appeals court judges, spoke out on a call with reporters after the U.S. Judicial Conference, the policymaking body of the judiciary, discussed security issues at its biannual meeting.
Their comments come at a time when allies of President Donald Trump, including billionaire Elon Musk, have loudly and bitterly complained about court rulings that have stymied his agenda.
“It’s a shame to see people attacking judges simply for doing their level best to do their job,” Sutton, who serves on the Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, told reporters. He chairs the Judicial Conference’s executive committee.
“Criticism is no surprise, it’s part of the job, but I do think when it gets to the level of a threat, it really is about attacking judicial independence, and that’s just not good for the system or the country,” he added.
Sullivan, a judge on the New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, mentioned violent incidents involving judges, including New Jersey-based U.S. District Judge Esther Salas, whose son was murdered at her home by an assailant who was targeting her.
“Everybody should be taking this seriously, because our system of government is premised on three independent branches and a judiciary that can function independently. That’s what makes it work,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan, who chairs a Judicial Conference committee on security, also stressed the need for the U.S. Marshals Service, which provides security for federal judges, to be fully funded and staffed amid broad cuts to the federal workforce under Trump.
“We need to make sure that the resources are in place to keep judges safe, to keep courthouses safe. I mean, we haven’t recently had attacks on courthouses, but that has happened in the not too distant past, and that is a concern,” he said.
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.
“All public officials, I think, have to be very careful and responsible in statements they make about other branches of government and about our system of justice,” Sullivan said. “I think the reality is that there are a lot of a lot of folks who will respond and react, perhaps inappropriately, based on something they heard or read.”
He also noted that the appropriate response for those who lose a case in the federal trial court is to appeal that decision, not seek to impeach the judge.
Sutton and Sullivan both said that the increase in threats towards judges has been a long-term trend across different presidential administrations.
Tuesday’s remarks follow similar comments made by Chief Justice John Roberts in his traditional end-of-year report, in which he warned of “illegitimate activity” aimed at undermining the judicial branch.
