Threats against judges have crossed the line

The destruction of South Carolina Circuit Court Judge Diane Goodstein’s home in a fiery inferno over the weekend immediately led to speculation that it was an act of political violence.

- Mary Ellen Klas, Tribune News Service

South Carolina officials are still investigating, and they said on Monday that “there is no evidence to indicate” that the cause of the explosion “was intentionally set.” But it says something about this moment that a judge being violently targeted was so easy to imagine. According to annual data compiled by the US Marshals Service, there has been an increase in threats against federal judges since Trump retook office. Judges have also reported receiving unsolicited pizzas delivered to their personal residences, including some in the name of the murdered son of a New Jersey federal judge. A judge close to Goodstein told FITSNews after the fire that she has “had multiple death threats over the years.”

Goodstein is just one of many judges who have been lambasted by Trump administration officials for issuing rulings the White House doesn't like. Last month, she imposed a temporary restraining order blocking the state from turning over its voter list to the Department of Justice. The ruling drew an immediate rebuke from Harmeet Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for Civil Rights at the Department of Justice.