Violence against judges in the United States has become a more pressing issue, according to experts reacting to the news that a defendant brutally attacked a Nevada judge who refused him a stay of execution Wednesday.
Video footage of the attack obtained by FOX 5 Las Vegas has gone viral on social media, and the defendant, Deobra Redden, was denied probation before Clark County District Court Judge Mary Kay Holthus and the sheriff's office. It shows him jumping towards it.
“There seems to be a trend towards illegal acts… it is spreading to different parts of the country. There appears to be a lack of accountability, and there is, “violence against other people and property,'' Kevin Ellman, former chief deputy district attorney for Colorado's 18th Judicial District, told FOX News Digital. Ta.
“These actions are being driven by the lack of bond reform and prosecution policies imposed in various jurisdictions.”
Shocking attack in Nevada shows the need for more protections, says judge whose son was murdered
A judge in Clark County, Nevada, was attacked in his courtroom Wednesday after denying a defendant probation. (Clark County Court)
Mr. Ellman, now president of Ellman & Ellman PC, added that without accountability, especially when mental illness is a factor, perpetrators are “unfettered and fearless to act on their own.”
“Such attacks against judges are rare, but are consistent with recent threats and protests outside judges' private residences when people were dissatisfied with their decisions,” Elman added. .
“The recent invasion of the Colorado Supreme Court building by armed assailants is just another example of how perpetrators are publicly held accountable for their unacceptable attacks on the justice system (judges, prosecutors, attorneys, witnesses). Unless questioned, these types of attacks will continue to increase in frequency and violence. ”
The attack on Judge Holthus is one of several high-profile assaults committed against judges in recent years. In a similar incident in February 2021, a defendant in a domestic violence case attempted to attack Pike County Judge Aubrey Rimes in a Mississippi courtroom. Rhimes pinned the defendant to the table.
Video shows Nevada man jumping and attacking Clark County judge after being denied probation
Retired Lt. Gov. Randy Sutton, a 30-year veteran of law enforcement in Las Vegas and New Jersey, told FOX News Digital that most courtrooms have security guards, so “assaults on judges inside courtrooms are less likely to occur.” “It's relatively rare,” he said.
However, “there have been several attacks on judges when they are not physically in court (such as at their homes), and of course there have been threats and protests at the homes of Supreme Court justices.”
“As with other criminal activities on the rise, the absence or perceived lack of consequences for intimidation and violence is what fuels these crimes.”
“An example of this is the failure to prosecute threats and protests at a Supreme Court justice's home,” Sutton said. “When particularly threatening or violent defendants are on trial or appear in court, additional security is often deployed to deal with potential threats. or by the sheriff of the county having jurisdiction over the court.”
Although physical attacks are rare, the U.S. Marshals Service recorded about 4,500 threats against U.S. judges in 2022, Reuters reported, citing U.S. Marshals Service Chief Ronald Davis. Ta. Occasionally, perpetrators plan to kill judges, and some succeed.
After Mr. Wilkinson was sworn in at the Washington County Courthouse in Hagerstown on January 10, 2020, the court's administrative judge, Judge Daniel P. Dwyer, presented the court's new judge, Mr. Andrew F. Wilkinson, right. ) sit next to Maryland, January 10, 2020. (Julie E. Green/Imagn)
In October, a Maryland man, Pedro Argote, was named as a suspect in the murder of Maryland Circuit Court Judge Andrew Wilkinson, 52. was found dead in his driveway outside his Hagerstown home just hours after presiding over a sentencing hearing in the suspect's divorce case. Mr. Wilkinson had given his estranged wife full custody of the suspect's children.
Maryland judge murderer Pedro Argote found dead, police say
Argot was found dead on October 26, about a week after he allegedly shot and killed Wilkinson.
The U.S. Marshals Service launched a nationwide manhunt for Pedro Argote, 49, before he was found dead. He is suspected of murdering a Maryland family court judge. (Washington County Sheriff's Office/USSMS/Julie E. Green/Imagn)
In June 2022, wisconsin men Former Juneau County Judge John Romer was shot and killed 15 years after being sentenced to prison.
Judge whose son was killed warns against protests at Judge Scottus' home: “There's no room for that in America''
In 2020, New Jersey federal judge Esther Salas lost her son after Roy Den Hollander shot and killed a 20-year-old man in a racially motivated attack targeting Salas. The gunman, posing as his delivery driver, killed Daniel Anderle and seriously injured Salas' husband Mark Anderle.
Salas told Fox News on Thursday that the viral video of the attack on Judge Holthus is “an opportunity for the United States to see what judges face on a daily basis.”
“This kind of anger is what we experience both in and out of the courtroom.”
Salas believes more laws should be enacted to protect the approximately 30,000 judges in the United States.
Esther Salas, a federal judge in New Jersey, lost her 20-year-old son when he was shot and killed in a racially motivated attack that targeted Salas in 2020. (Fox News)
“There are so many states that don't have laws protecting judges, and I'm really talking about personal information,” she said. “But this is an example of how we may be looking to strengthen our courts and protocols to protect judges both inside and outside the courtroom.”
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In December, President Biden signed the Daniel Anderle Judicial Security and Privacy Act, which aims to keep judges safe by protecting their personal information. But Salas says more needs to be done to prevent judges from becoming victims of targeted crime.
