West Coast Resident Who Attempted to Assassinate Justice Brett Kavanaugh Jailed for 96 Months

A resident from California who admitted to trying to assassinate US Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2022 was handed a prison term on Friday to 97 months in federal prison.

Court Hearing and Judicial Comments

The defendant, Sophie Roske, who was charged under her original name Nicholas Roske but now uses she/her pronouns, received her sentence during a court hearing before US District Judge Deborah Boardman in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Judge Boardman labeled Roske's crime as "completely unacceptable," but noted that the accused displayed sincere regret, had a clean history, and was unlikely to reoffend.

Details of the Case and Guilty Plea

Roske pleaded guilty in April to the charge of trying to kill a justice and had faced a possible life sentence. Legal authorities stated that she traveled from California equipped with a firearm, bullets, a prying tool, pepper spray, and additional gear with the intent to carry out a killing "for terroristic purposes."

Upon reaching Kavanaugh's home, Roske contacted the police after seeing US marshals positioned outside the house, informing the operator that she was suicidal and intended to kill Justice Kavanaugh, as recorded in court filings.

Reasons and Personal Apology

The prosecution indicated that Roske, who was 26 years old when arrested, was upset about anticipated Supreme Court opinions that would end the national right to abortion and roll back firearm laws.

Speaking directly to the presiding judge during Friday's proceeding, Roske expressed regret to Kavanaugh and his family for "the significant anxiety" she had inflicted them.

"People have depicted me as a villain, and this tragic mistake I made will follow me for the remainder of my days," the defendant said.

Government's Stance and Legal Team's Request

The government's attorneys had advocated for a incarceration term of at least 30 years, stating that Roske had premeditated her actions for months and was resolved to find the addresses of four unidentified sitting Supreme Court justices.

"Roske posed a very real threat to our system of government, our constitution," assistant US attorney Coreen Mao declared at the hearing. She stated that no public official should live in fear of being murdered at any moment for performing their duties.

Roske's defense attorneys had asked Judge Boardman to impose a term of no more than 96 months, pointing out that she had contacted emergency services to turn herself in and had worked with the authorities. Roske should be sentenced "for what she did, not for what she thought about," they argued.

Broader Context of Political Violence

The sentencing occurs amid signs of increasing political violence in the US, including two attempted assassinations of Donald Trump during his presidential campaign last year, and the killing last month of conservative figure Charlie Kirk at a university in Utah.

Menaces against federal judges have more than doubled since 2021, according to US Marshals Service data analyzed by Reuters last year. Some judges who have decided against Trump administration directives have faced threats and harassment along with their families, as reported in a Reuters investigation.