But the seven New Jersey Democrats wanted protection to include federal judges after U.S. District Judge Esther Salas’s son was killed in a shooting at her home in the state in 2020. Although the final measure does not include that language, it allows his marshal Supreme Court to provide security to “any officer” on the bench if deemed necessary by the marshal. The New Jersey House of Representatives who voted against the bill are MPs Bonnie Watson Coleman, Albio Sires, Mikie Sherrill, Donald M. Payne Jr., Bill Pascrell Jr., Tom Malinowski and Josh Gottheimer. Several of the more liberal members of the Democratic caucus also voted against the bill. Security guards around the Supreme Court received renewed attention when the Justice Department arrested a man near Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s home in Maryland earlier in June and charged him with attempting or threatening to kidnap or kill an American judge. For the seven New Jersey MPs who voted against the act Tuesday, the Salas tragedy served as a clear reason to broaden the scope of the measure. Since the death of her son nearly two years ago, Salas has pushed for greater protection for current and former federal judges, including legislation that will protect their privacy and the privacy of their families by keeping personal data such as home addresses and information. vehicles from databases and public records. Speaking to CNN last week, he stressed the need for more protections for federal judges, noting the recent death of a Wisconsin judge in what appeared to be a targeted attack. “My reaction is heartache. My heart is broken. Another family will have to endure what Mark and I have been living with for 23 months,” Salas told CNN. “It’s absurd. It’s dangerous. And we have to start protecting judges all over this country.” “Many judges lost their lives because they did one thing: their job, their support for democracy,” he said. “Really, the judges are at the forefront of ensuring that democracy is, you know, alive and well in our country.” The U.S. Department of Defense has reported an increase in threats against judges in recent years. The threats and inappropriate comments made to the judiciary almost doubled from 2016 to 2018 and have remained high – around 4,500 in 2021 – since then, according to the Marshals Service. The U.S. military is protecting some 2,700 judges, as well as 30,000 federal prosecutors and law enforcement officials. CNN’s Clare Foran, Kristin Wilson, Annie Grayer, Eric Levenson and Boris Sanchez contributed to this report.
