SCOTUS asks Maryland officials to stop protests outside justices' homes
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The Supreme Court has asked Maryland officials, including Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, to enforce state and county laws that prohibit picketing at private homes after protests started outside of the Supreme Court Justices' homes last month, NBC News reports.
The big picture: Demonstrations began after the draft Supreme Court abortion decision was leaked in May, and have continued on since the court overturned Roe v. Wade last month.
- At the time, Hogan said he was “deeply concerned” that hundreds of people were picketing outside the homes of some justices, according to NBC.
What they're saying: Protests at and threatening activities at justices’ homes have increased, Supreme Court marshal Gail Curley said in a letter to Hogan and a letter to Marc Elrich, the executive of Montgomery County, NBC News writes.
- According to Curley, 75 protesters “loudly picketed at one justice’s home in Maryland for 20-30 minutes in the evening, then proceeded to picket at another justice’s home for 30 minutes, where the crowd grew to 100, and finally returned to the first justice’s home to picket for another 20 minutes.”
- Maryland law prohibits assembling “with another in a manner that disrupts a person’s right to tranquility in the person’s home," she added.
- "This is exactly the kind of conduct that Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit," Curley wrote.
Flashback: Nicholas John Roske was charged with attempted murder after he allegedly told detectives he traveled from California to Maryland intending to kill Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
- Law enforcement officials found a black tactical vest and tactical knife, a pistol with two magazines and ammunition, pepper spray, zip ties, a hammer, screwdriver, nail punch, crow bar, pistol light, duct tape and hiking boots with padding on the outside of the soles in Roske's backpack.
- Roske allegedly told detectives that he was upset about the leak of a Supreme Court draft decision that would overturn Roe v. Wade and the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
