The High Court is under attack. Radicals want to literally off the sitting Justices.
And now a SCOTUS assassination attempt has emerged with disturbing new details.
Details Emerge as Accused Assassination Plotter Prepares for Trial
Nicholas Roske, the man accused of attempting to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2022, is set to face trial in June on a charge of attempted assassination. Court documents made public this month offer an unprecedented look into Roske’s state of mind and the events that led to the near-fatal encounter. The transcript of Roske’s statements to authorities and his subsequent legal motions reveal his motivations, mental state, and ongoing legal challenges.
According to court records, Roske, who was arrested after showing up outside Kavanaugh’s home, told authorities he had been planning the attack for a month. During an interview with investigators after his arrest, Roske expressed his intention to k*ll Kavanaugh and then take his own life. “My plan was to k*ll Mr. Kavanaugh and then myself,” Roske said, as quoted in the transcript.
The public defenders representing Roske have argued that his constitutional rights were violated during his arrest and the questioning that followed. They claim that Roske was not properly informed of his rights before being interrogated outside the justice’s home, and that when he was later questioned at the police station, he had not validly waived those rights.
As the legal proceedings unfold, prosecutors are due to respond to the defense’s claims sometime in February. The court documents released recently, however, provide the most detailed picture yet of Roske’s mental state during the disturbing incident. They also shed light on his history of psychiatric issues, which may have influenced his actions.
In interviews with law enforcement, Roske repeatedly linked his desire to k*ll Kavanaugh to his su*cidal tendencies and his intense anger at the Supreme Court’s leaked draft opinion, which suggested the overturning of constitutional abortion protections. “I’ve been su*cidal for a long time, and when I saw that the leaked draft, it made me upset and then it made me want to—I don’t know. I was under the— I was under the delusion that I could make the world a better place by k*lling him,” Roske told investigators.
So, today Nicholas Roske was indicted for the attempted assassination of Brett Kavanaugh, Supreme Court Justice. We also learned the assassin texted his sister while waiting outside Kavanaugh's home. The sister convinced him to call 911.
Sorry, @nytimes readers. Spoiler! pic.twitter.com/tAlBWwxDWN
— Jeryl Bier (@JerylBier) June 15, 2022
Roske’s anger toward the Supreme Court was not only sparked by abortion rights. He also cited his frustration with the Court’s consideration of loosening gun restrictions following mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas. “Hearing that this person that I was already upset with was planning on making it easier for people to do stuff like that, you know,” Roske said, acknowledging the irony of his own ability to obtain a firearm. He also alluded to a sense of disillusionment with the Court’s perceived priorities.
Further interviews with Roske revealed he was dealing with a medical condition, details of which are redacted in the court documents, which he claimed worsened when he did not take his medication. Roske also mentioned that he had been placed in psychiatric holds three times before. “One of the biggest struggles with my [redacted condition] is having a sense of purpose, a sense that I’m doing something that matters, so I thought if I could, like, prevent a child from being r*ped, that would be good,” he explained, discussing his troubled thoughts.
Roske’s journey toward Kavanaugh’s home began on June 7, 2022, when he flew from California to Washington Dulles International Airport. After landing shortly before midnight, he took a taxi to Kavanaugh’s home in Maryland. Roske later explained he found the justice’s neighborhood by referencing Wikipedia and matched a photo of the home from a news article with images on Google Maps.
However, upon reaching the area, Roske abandoned his plans. He placed a 911 call after a conversation with his sister, who had grown concerned after receiving a text from Roske saying, “I love you.” Roske later shared that his sister’s words, urging him to reconsider, played a significant role in his decision to call for help. “She wanted to have me as a sibling for the rest of her life and not, you know, with that ending. Since I got a relationship and her perspective, I immediately decided to call 911 instead,” he said.
The 911 transcript, which was released by authorities earlier, shows Roske talking with the dispatcher until officers arrived on the scene. A newly released bodycam footage transcript captures further exchanges between officers and Roske, who continued to cooperate with their questions. At one point, officers attempted to confirm the severity of Roske’s statements, with one officer asking, “He didn’t say he was going to k*ll himself? He didn’t say that? He didn’t say he was going to k*ll somebody else? No?”
Amid these developments, Roske’s legal team has also filed motions to suppress evidence, arguing that searches of his belongings were unconstitutional. According to his defense, the search of Roske’s suitcase, backpack, and gun case violated his Fourth Amendment rights, as no search warrant was obtained for these items.
Authorities discovered several weapons, including a pistol, crowbar, ammunition, zip ties, and other tools, which Roske admitted to purchasing online, including his firearm from a nearby gun store in Simi Valley, California. His public defenders contend that these searches do not meet the narrow exceptions for warrantless searches, and they plan to challenge the lawfulness of the evidence presented in a future hearing.
His defense and prosecution teams will likely continue to spar over the legal complexities of his case, including the admissibility of his statements and the constitutionality of the evidence obtained. Meanwhile, the public remains captivated by the details of a case that nearly resulted in the death of a Supreme Court justice. Attempts on the lives of sitting U.S. Supreme Court Justices are not common, so naturally the public is very much tuned into this ongoing legal case.
"There is a way he could be removed" -Nicholas Roske's Reddit account before attempting to assassinate Justice Kavanaugh. pic.twitter.com/Gl6LztoS0c
— Reddit Lies (@reddit_lies) July 29, 2022
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
