Federal judges say a surge in violent threats has followed public attacks and inflammatory rhetoric aimed at the judiciary, leaving many judges fearful for themselves and their families.
Judges who spoke with 60 Minutes — many off camera — described a wave of harassment that includes a torrent of angry voicemails, harassing deliveries, doxxing and even hoaxes that brought armed deputies to their door. The threats spiked after high-profile rulings against President Trump and his policies, judges and security officials say.
John Coughenour, a federal district judge in Washington state, blocked the administration’s effort to end birthright citizenship. After that decision, his home was the target of a cruel hoax: deputies arrived with rifles after someone falsely reported he had killed his wife. A day later there was a bomb threat, and a congressman circulated a “Wanted” poster with pictures of several judges. Coughenour told 60 Minutes he has received dozens, perhaps hundreds, of death threats and that the hostility he has seen in the last year is unprecedented in his 44-year career.
The program documented many examples of violent language left on judges’ voicemails after rulings: callers wishing rape, decapitation or assassination on judges and their families. The U.S. Marshals Service, which protects the federal judiciary, is stretched thin. Judges told 60 Minutes the marshals are overwhelmed identifying which verbal threats could lead to real-world violence. According to reporting cited in the piece, some 400 federal judges were targets of serious threats last year — a rise of about 78% in four years.
Retired Judge John Jones, a George W. Bush appointee, said dozens of former judges formed a bipartisan group to lobby the White House to stop demonizing the courts. Jones called the environment “toxic,” warning that people can find judges’ addresses and might strike at judges or their family members. He said the administration’s repeated, harsh attacks on judges appear intended to delegitimize the federal courts and make it harder for them to check presidential power.
Judge Esther Salas, a federal district judge in New Jersey and a former Obama appointee, has become an outspoken critic of personal attacks on judges. Salas is a survivor of a targeted attack: in 2020 a disgruntled litigant came to her home and killed her son Daniel and wounded her husband. Though that attack was not politically motivated, Salas said she is more worried now than after her son’s murder because national rhetoric against judges has worsened and she believes it emboldens people to act. She told 60 Minutes that dehumanizing judges undermines trust in the courts and that appeals and legal processes — not threats — are the right responses to disagreeable rulings.
Security firms and court officials described evolving threats beyond threatening calls. Ron Zayas, CEO of Ironwall, which helps remove judges’ personal data from the web, said vendors find judges’ names and addresses in databases used by threat actors and that anonymous posts on forums and the dark web have proliferated. Zayas said the “mob mentality” of threatening judges to influence decisions is a growing concern.
Marshals are investigating new forms of intimidation, including large numbers of prank or unsolicited pizza deliveries made to judges’ homes and to the addresses of judges’ children. In some cases, orders were placed under the names of victims, including Judge Salas’s slain son; Salas called that tactic a weaponization of her child’s name that inflicts fear on judges and their families.
President Trump has frequently railed against judges he sees as obstructing his policies — using words such as “fools,” “lunatics,” “monsters” and “rogue” — after rulings against tariffs, immigration policies and other administration actions. Judge Coughenour and others said such language provokes followers to escalate their rhetoric into threats. The White House told 60 Minutes that, as a survivor of assassination attempts, the president understands political violence and in statements accused the judiciary of brazen defiance in some rulings. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche described the situation as “a war” in comments reported by 60 Minutes; he told the program in a written statement that while some judges issue “overbroad” injunctions, threats and intimidation of federal officials are unlawful.
Judges said the sudden volume and intensity of threats — and the testing of institutional norms — endangers the rule of law. They urged appeals and lawful channels to challenge decisions and asked political leaders to stop inflammatory rhetoric that could encourage violence. Marshals and court security officials continue to adjust protections, but judges stress that sustained, responsible discourse from leaders is crucial to preventing further escalation.
