(Bloomberg) -- An armed man who made threats against Justice Brett Kavanaugh was arrested near the justice’s home in the early morning hours Wednesday, the Supreme Court said in a statement.
Initial evidence indicates the man was angry about the leaked draft of an opinion overturning the constitutional right to abortion, the Washington Post reported, citing two people familiar with the investigation. The man was also angry about recent mass shootings, the Post said.
“The man was armed and made threats against Justice Kavanaugh,” Supreme Court spokeswoman Patricia McCabe said in an email.
Kavanaugh’s home in Chevy Chase, Maryland, has been the site of protests since Politico published the draft opinion May 2. Politico said Kavanaugh was one of five justices who at least tentatively voted to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling, which established the constitutional right to abortion in 1973.
The Supreme Court has ramped up security since then, surrounding its building with eight-foot unscalable fencing. The building has been closed to the public since the pandemic began in March 2020. The court is scheduled to rule by the end of its term in late June or early July.
