Court Security
More money sought after judiciary says funding shortfalls harm courthouse security
A funding resolution that gives the federal judiciary $391 million less than requested is significantly affecting the judiciary’s ability to ensure courthouse security and fund legal defense, according to a letter to members of the U.S. House of Representatives’ and the U.S. Senate’s Appropriations Committees. (Image from Shutterstock)
A funding resolution that gives the federal judiciary $391 million less than requested is significantly affecting the judiciary’s ability to ensure courthouse security and fund legal defense, according to a letter to members of the U.S. House of Representatives’ and the U.S. Senate’s Appropriations Committees.
“We have significant concerns about our ability to properly secure federal courthouses given current resource levels,” two officials with the U.S. Judicial Conference said in the April 10 letter released Friday.
The officials are Judge Amy J. St. Eve, chair of the Judicial Conference’s Committee on the Budget, and Judge Robert J. Conrad Jr., secretary of the Judicial Conference, according to an April 18 press release.
Fifty people have been charged in connection with threats against judges, the letter said. Currently, 67 judges are receiving “enhanced online security screening services” because of their “involvement in high-profile cases or rulings that have garnered attention in the media and on social media platforms,” according to the letter. “In extreme cases, the U.S. Marshals Service has been required to take extraordinary measures to ensure the safety of judges.”
The reduced court security budget keeps funding at 2023 levels, the letter said. In addition, the Defender Services program “is also significantly underfunded,” the letter said.
The letter said the judicial branch’s budget for fiscal year 2026 will be submitted this month. Adequate funding “will be critical,” the letter said.
Law.com, Law360 and Bloomberg Law (via How Appealing) have coverage.
Democratic lawmakers are seeking increased funding, Law360 reports in a separate story.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Rep. Henry C. “Hank” Johnson of Georgia have asked Chief Justice John Roberts whether more funding is needed to combat physical threats that challenge “the viability of the rule of law itself,” according to Law360.
And Democratic U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island have asked for a briefing on judicial threats.
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