WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, sent a letter today to U.S. Attorney General (AG) Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel urging them to investigate the ongoing and increasing threats against federal judges. Recently, federal judges and their family members have received 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. The targeted individuals reportedly include Supreme Court justices, judges handling legal cases involving the Trump Administration, and the children of judges. Some of these deliveries were made using the name of Judge Esther Salas’s son, Daniel Anderl, who was murdered at the family’s home by a former litigant who posed as a deliveryman.
Durbin wrote, “These incidents threaten not only judges and their families, but also judicial independence and the rule of law. It is imperative that the Justice Department (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigate these anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and that those responsible be held accountable to the full extent of the law.”
Durbin continued, “Accordingly, I request that you immediately investigate these deliveries. In the event you have already initiated investigations, I request an update on those efforts. I also ask that you provide information on any steps that DOJ or the FBI have taken to protect the judges and their families who have received anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and to prevent further anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and other threats.”
In the letter, Durbin also highlighted the essential role that the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) plays in protecting the federal judiciary and urged Bondi and Patel to ensure that the size of the USMS workforce is not reduced. USMS Acting Director Mark P. Pittella reportedly sent a letter on April 15 to more than 5,000 USMS employees offering them the opportunity to resign.
Durbin wrote, “In the midst of increasing threats of violence against judges, it is inappropriate and unacceptable to reduce the size of the agency tasked with protecting the federal judiciary and the judicial process. Accordingly, I ask you to commit to fully supporting USMS and to maintaining or increasing its current number of employees.”
To better understand these threats and how DOJ and the FBI are responding, Durbin asked Bondi and Patel to answer several outstanding questions and provide a briefing to the Committee by May 20.
Full text of the letter can be found here and below.
May 6, 2025
Dear Attorney General Bondi and Director Patel:
I write regarding a disturbing development related to the ongoing and increasing threats to the federal judiciary. In recent months, federal judges and their relatives have received anonymous deliveries to their homes. These deliveries are threats intended to show that those seeking to intimidate the targeted judge know the judge’s address or their family members’ addresses. The targeted individuals reportedly include Supreme Court justices, judges handling legal cases involving the Administration, and the children of judges. Some of these deliveries were made using the name of Judge Esther Salas’s son, Daniel Anderl, who was murdered at the family’s home by a former litigant who posed as a deliveryman.
These incidents threaten not only judges and their families, but also judicial independence and the rule of law. It is imperative that the Justice Department (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigate these anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and that those responsible be held accountable to the full extent of the law.
Accordingly, I request that you immediately investigate these deliveries. In the event you have already initiated investigations, I request an update on those efforts. I also ask that you provide information on any steps that DOJ or the FBI have taken to protect the judges and their families who have received anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and to prevent further anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and other threats.
Additionally, I want to highlight the essential role that the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) plays in protecting the federal judiciary and urge you to ensure that the size of the USMS workforce is not reduced. USMS Acting Director Mark P. Pittella reportedly sent a letter on April 15 to more than 5,000 USMS employees offering them the opportunity to resign. In the midst of increasing threats of violence against judges, it is inappropriate and unacceptable to reduce the size of the agency tasked with protecting the federal judiciary and the judicial process. Accordingly, I ask you to commit to fully supporting USMS and to maintaining or increasing its current number of employees.
Finally, pursuant to this Committee’s constitutional obligation to perform oversight over DOJ and the FBI, please respond to the following questions and provide a briefing to committee staff no later than May 20, 2025:
Please provide an unclassified, non-law enforcement sensitive response to all of these questions to the greatest extent possible, with any classified or law-enforcement sensitive material under separate cover.
I look forward to your prompt attention to these important requests.
Sincerely,
-30-