Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel recently joined a bipartisan group of 51 attorneys general in a letter urging Congress to pass legislation aimed at protecting the safety of federal judges and their families.
Addressed to leaders of both the House and Senate Judiciary committees, the letter supports passage of the Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act or similar legislation.
That bill would protect the confidentiality of personal identifying information of members of the federal judiciary in public records and limit the distribution of that information online and by data brokers.
Considering attacks and increasing threats against members of the federal judiciary, the letter calls passage of such legislation an “urgent” matter and notes that the proposal has bipartisan support in both houses of Congress.
“Public officials, whether elected or appointed, should not have to worry for their lives and safety in service to our country, or for the lives and safety of their family members, for that matter,” Nessel said. “Federal judges must be able to rule from the bench without fear of retribution, and by withholding the disclosure of personal information for these officials, this commonsense legislation further supports their ability to serve our public and our democracy in pursuit of a fair and free judicial system.”
The Daniel Anderl Judicial Security Act is named for 20-year-old Daniel Anderl, the late son of Judge Esther Salas of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
Daniel was killed on July 19, 2020, when an attorney who had appeared in a case before Judge Salas – a man described in today’s letter as “deranged” – appeared at her home and shot both Daniel and Judge Salas’ husband. The judge’s husband was critically wounded but survived the attack.
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