In letter to Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Patel, Durbin doubles down on request for investigation that DOJ and FBI leadership is delinquent in initiating
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today again demanded that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigate the ongoing and increasing threats against federal judges in a letter to Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Patel.
Durbin began by admonishing Bondi and Patel for leaving his May 6 investigation request unanswered, writing: “Over a month has passed since my letter, and I have yet to receive any response. Your delay makes clear that you are not concerned with the ongoing and increasing threats to our federal judges. The federal judiciary cannot afford to wait any longer for action. Since I last wrote to you, threats against the federal judiciary have continued, and additional information about those threats has become public.”
New reporting found that the U.S. Marshals Service has seen a spike in threats against federal judges, including 197 federal judges threatened between March 1 and May 27 of this year. One report identified more than 600 posts on social media and right-leaning message boards since February targeting family members of judges who ruled against the Trump Administration—with the posts viewed more than 200 million times. Another report described federal judges and their family members receiving anonymous deliveries to their homes intended to show that those seeking to intimidate the targeted judge know the judge’s address or their family members’ addresses.
Durbin concluded with a renewed request to investigate the matter, writing: “As I noted in my May 6 letter, these incidents threaten not only judges and their families, but also judicial independence and the rule of law. Threats against judges cannot be tolerated and must be investigated—and those responsible for these threats must be held accountable. I expect your prompt response to this pressing matter.”
For a PDF of the letter to Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Patel, click here.
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