A Wyoming judge's home was swatted late one evening last year. A man involved in a custody hearing threatened to make a citizen's arrest of the judge presiding over the case—before threatening to rape the judge. A woman known to have access to a large cache of firearms banged on the door to a court chamber before being restrained and arrested.
Those are just a few stories about the kinds of threats and actions made against judges shared by the Wyoming Supreme Court in the last 5 years.
The number of reported threats has spiked from 28 to 118during that time, according to data provided by the Wyoming Supreme Court. The numbers could be higher, a spokesman for the Wyoming Supreme Court said, but some incidents aren't recorded. A report by Reuters found that serious threats against federal judges have more than doubled in the same period.
In response, Wyoming Chief Justice Kate Fox joined a chorus of judges and officials praising new legislation proposed to Congress in March. The bill, which is called the Countering Threats and Attacks on Our Judges Act, is designed to help state courts address escalating threats of violence against judges, court staff, and the public.
Justice Fox's office shared a disturbing example from Clark County, Nevada. In the video, a judge is speaking with a defendant who's off-screen. The defendant curses the judge then he runs and leaps over the bench before attacking her.
Fox said she hasn't been the victim of such threats. But in some of Wyoming's small communities, it's nearly impossible to avoid bad actors if they're determined to find a judge.
"Sometimes they show up at their homes," said Fox. "Sometimes they see them in the parking lot of the supermarket. And that means that the threats aren't just to judges; they're to their families, their neighbors, to all the court staff, all the people who use the courthouses around the state of Wyoming."
Fox said the bill could ensure that the concept of "justice for all" is preserved when public figures are increasingly under attack, and public trust in the justice system continues to fall.
"But for the judiciary, I think it's extra important, because judges need to make hard decisions every day," said Fox. "And they need to not be afraid of making those hard decisions or the system doesn't work."
Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) echoed that sentiment in a statement shared with Wyoming Public Media.
"Judicial officers across the country deserve to do their jobs without fear or threats of violence,” said Barrasso. “The growing threats against judges and their families is unacceptable.”
The bill has been referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. In the meantime, Justice Fox said the Wyoming Legislature gave funds to judges and other officials to scrub their personal information from the Internet.
Check out this week’s Open Spaces for a more in-depth interview with Justice Fox.
This reporting was made possible by a grant from the Corporation For Public Broadcasting, supporting state government coverage in the state. Wyoming Public Media and Jackson Hole Community Radio are partnering to cover state issues both on air and online.
