Bloomberg — The chief security officer for the US Supreme Court demanded that Maryland officials enforce laws against picketing in front of private houses, saying that “threatening activity” has increased in recent weeks.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Chief Justice John Roberts, and Chief Justice John Roberts reside in Montgomery County, outside Washington, D.C. Protestors have been marching in both their houses since May, when a draft ruling in Roe v. Wade was published.
Gail A. Curley (Marshal of the Court) sent Friday’s letters to Larry Hogan, Maryland Governor, and Marc Elrich from Montgomery County. They noted that both state law and county law forbid such demonstrations in front private residences.
“For weeks on end, large groups of protesters chanting slogans, using bullhorns, and banging drums have picketed Justices’ homes in Maryland,” Curley wrote to Hogan.
“Earlier this week, for example, 75 protesters loudly picketed at one Justice’s home in Maryland for 20-30 minutes in the evening, then proceeded to picket another Justice’s home for 30 minutes, where the crowd grew to 100, and finally returned to the first Justice’s home,” she wrote. “This is exactly the kind of conduct that the Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit.”
Curley, who is responsible for investigating the leak of the draft opinion, didn’t mention the justices by name in the letters. The offices of Hogan and Elrich didn’t return requests for comment.
The Justice Department offered security services for the Supreme Court’s justices in mid-May as protests rose about the leak of the opinion. Last month, a California man was charged with attempted murder after being arrested with a pistol outside of Kavanaugh’s house and threatening to kill him.
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