Brett Kavanaugh assassination plot

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Brett Kavanaugh assassination plot
Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh Official Portrait (full length).jpg
Kavanaugh's Supreme Court portrait
Location Chevy Chase, Maryland, U.S.
DateJune 8, 2022;3 years ago (2022-06-08)
1:05 a.m. (EST)
Target Brett Kavanaugh
Attack type
 Attempted assassination, attempted murder-suicide
Deaths0
Injured0
PerpetratorSophie Roske (formerly Nicholas John Roske)
ChargesAttempted murder of a Justice of the United States

On June 8, 2022, Sophie Roske (formerly Nicholas John Roske) traveled to the home of Brett Kavanaugh, an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court, with plans to break into Kavanaugh's home, kill him, and then kill herself. [1] After arriving at Kavanaugh's residence and alerting on-site US Marshalls, Roske called the police on herself and was arrested.

Contents

Roske told police she was frustrated with the leaked Supreme Court decision that was poised to overrule Roe v. Wade , the 1973 decision that guaranteed abortion as a right, as well as a recent school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, and the possibility of the Court loosening gun restrictions under the Second Amendment.

Incident

Roske traveled by plane from her residence in Simi Valley, California, to the Washington, D.C., area. She then took a taxi cab to Kavanaugh's home in Chevy Chase, Maryland, arriving at 1:05 a.m. on June 8, 2022. [2] [3] She was wearing black clothing and was carrying a suitcase, a backpack, and several items and weapons: a Glock-17 pistol with ammunition, zip ties, a tactical knife, pepper spray, a hammer, a screwdriver, a nail punch, a crowbar, duct tape, a pistol light, and boots padded to be stealthy. [2] [4] [5] Upon Roske's arrival, two deputy U.S. Marshals stationed outside Kavanaugh's home saw her step out of the cab. [2]

After arriving and seeing the deputy U.S. Marshals, Roske started walking down the street. [2] She then texted her sister and explained her intentions; Roske's sister convinced her to call 9-1-1. [6] At 1:38 a.m., [4] Roske called 9-1-1 and was connected with Montgomery County's emergency communications center. [2] [4] Roske told the operator that she was having suicidal thoughts, that she was armed, and that she had traveled from California to Maryland "to kill a specific United States Supreme Court justice". [2] She also said, "I'm standing now, but I can sit, whatever. I want to be fully compliant." [4] When police arrived, Roske was still on the phone with the communications center, and she was arrested without incident. [2] [4]

Perpetrator

Sophie Roske (formerly Nicholas John Roske) was a 26-year-old from Simi Valley, California, at the time of the assassination attempt. [2] [7] In September 2025, Roske came out as a trans woman. [8]

After her arrest, Roske told police she was upset about the leaked draft of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization , which signaled the Court was positioned to overrule Roe v. Wade , the 1973 decision that declared abortion a Constitutional right. She also cited a recent school shooting in Texas and her belief that Kavanaugh would loosen gun restrictions. [9] On internet chats, Roske wrote, "Im[ sic ] gonna stop roe v wade from being overturned" and that she was going to "Remove some people from the supreme court." It was later revealed that Roske spoke of killing two other conservative Supreme Court justices. [6]

Roske's indictment revealed that her intention was to kill three conservative Supreme Court justices so that three liberal Supreme Court justices could be appointed and change the dynamics of the Supreme Court "for decades to come." [10]

Roske has been held by authorities since her arrest on June 8, 2022. [11] A federal grand jury indicted Roske of attempted murder of a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. [12] On March 18, 2023, Roske's attorneys requested more time to coordinate her defense, which was granted by Judge Peter Messitte. [13] On July 22, 2023, Roske pleaded not guilty to the charges, [14] and a trial date was set for June 9, 2025. However, on April 8, 2025, Roske changed her plea to guilty. [15] [16] She is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. district judge Deborah Boardman on October 3, 2025. Prosecutors indicate that federal sentencing guidelines suggest a sentence ranging from 30 years to life imprisonment. [17] Roske came out as a trans woman in September 2025, choosing the name Sophie for court communication purposes, though her legal name remains unchanged. [8]

References

  1. ↑ Lybrand, Holmes; Sneed, Tierney (July 27, 2022). "FBI says man accused of attempting to kill Brett Kavanaugh said he was 'shooting for 3' justices". CNN . Archived from the original on March 2, 2025. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Cramer, Maria; Jiménez, Jesus (June 8, 2022). "Armed Man Traveled to Justice Kavanaugh's Home to Kill Him, Officials Say" . The New York Times . ISSN   1553-8095. OCLC   1645522. Archived from the original on February 5, 2025. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  3. ↑ Quinn, Melissa; MacFarlane, Scott (June 9, 2022). "Man arrested near Kavanaugh's home charged with attempting to murder Supreme Court justice". CBS News . Contributions from Jack Turman and Gillian Morley. Archived from the original on December 26, 2024. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Morse, Dan (June 9, 2022). "New 911 tapes show how man accused in Kavanaugh murder plot abandoned plan" . The Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286. OCLC   2269358. Archived from the original on December 31, 2023. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  5. ↑ Lybrand, Holmes (June 22, 2022). "Man charged with attempting to kill Justice Brett Kavanaugh pleads not guilty". CNN . Archived from the original on December 25, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  6. 1 2 Morse, Dan (June 15, 2022). "Man accused of Kavanaugh murder plot indicted by federal grand jury" . The Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286. OCLC   2269358. Archived from the original on July 23, 2024. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Judge likely to order mental evaluation for defendant in Kavanaugh threat case". CBS News . Associated Press. October 27, 2022. Archived from the original on December 26, 2024. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  8. 1 2 Schonfeld, Zach (September 19, 2025). "DOJ wants to put attempted Kavanaugh assassin behind bars for at least 30 years". The Hill . Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  9. ↑ Morley, Gillian (June 22, 2022). "Nicholas Roske, accused of trying to kill Brett Kavanaugh, pleads not guilty". CBS News . Archived from the original on December 26, 2024. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Feds: Kavanaugh plotter sought to alter court 'for decades'". Associated Press . July 28, 2022. Archived from the original on December 14, 2024. Retrieved March 19, 2025.
  11. ↑ Morse, Dan (June 22, 2022). "Man accused in Kavanaugh assassination plot pleads not guilty" . The Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286. OCLC   2269358. Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  12. ↑ "California Man Facing Federal Indictment in Maryland for the Attempted Murder of a Supreme Court Justice". United States Attorney's Office, District of Maryland . June 15, 2022. Archived from the original on February 7, 2025. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  13. ↑ Willer-Allred, Michele (March 18, 2023). "Roske defense wants extra time to vet facts in attempted murder case". Simi Valley Acorn. Archived from the original on June 28, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  14. ↑ Belmond, Sylvie; Willer-Allred, Michele (July 2022). "Roske pleads not guilty to murder attempt". Simi Valley Acorn. Archived from the original on January 22, 2025. Retrieved March 19, 2025.
  15. ↑ Lybrand, Holmes (August 20, 2024). "Man charged in assassination plot against Brett Kavanaugh to stand trial in June 2025". CNN . Archived from the original on December 26, 2024. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  16. ↑ "Nicholas Roske, man accused of trying to kill Brett Kavanaugh, intends to plead guilty, court documents show". CBS News. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Man pleads guilty to trying to kill Brett Kavanaugh at judge's home". The Guardian. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
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