The Justice Department has laid out chilling new details of Nicholas “Sophie” Roske’s plot to assassinate Justice Brett Kavanaugh — and potentially three other members of the Supreme Court — calling the elaborate scheme nothing short of an act of terrorism against America’s judiciary.
In a sentencing memo filed Friday in Maryland, federal prosecutors urged the court to impose at least a 30-year prison sentence on Roske, who has already pleaded guilty to attempting to kill a Supreme Court justice.
The filing reveals a months-long plan fueled by rage over abortion and gun rulings. Roske meticulously researched his targets, stockpiled weapons, and even created a Google map containing what he believed were the home addresses of four justices. He allegedly told others he was “shooting for 3,” noting with chilling nonchalance that “people have killed judges before.”
Authorities say Roske flew from California to Virginia in June 2022, carrying a Glock 17, ammunition, a knife, zip ties, tactical gear, and burglary tools. After taking a taxi directly to Kavanaugh’s suburban neighborhood, he spotted U.S. marshals outside the justice’s home. Only then did he abandon the mission, phoning his sister and eventually dialing 911 to turn himself in — a move prosecutors argue was purely out of fear of being caught, not a crisis of conscience.
The government’s memo portrays a methodical campaign of preparation: internet searches such as “most effective way to silently kill someone,” “how to break glass quietly,” and “countries least likely to extradite to the US”; repeated visits to a shooting range; and attempts to scrub his devices of incriminating data before the trip.
Prosecutors said the plot was designed to “single-handedly alter the Constitutional order for ideological ends.” It unfolded at the height of national turmoil, just weeks after the leaked draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson signaled the overturning of Roe v. Wade — the very decision that became reality later that summer.
