An armed man who allegedly made threats against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh was arrested early Wednesday near the justice’s suburban Washington, D.C. home, a court spokesperson and a local police official told USA TODAY.
The suspect, whose identity was not immediately disclosed by authorities, was arrested about 1:50 a.m. and transported to a local Montgomery County, Maryland Police district.
The incident came at a fraught moment for the Supreme Court, as the justices are weighing a case that could fundamentally alter reproductive rights throughout the nation as well as a Second Amendment appeal that could vastly expand Americans’ ability to carry guns in public. Those two cases in particular, both of which are expected to be decided this month, have put more attention and outside political pressure on the justices than at any time in years.
Montgomery County police received a call for service at 1:42 a.m. to a location near Kavanaugh’s house and made the arrest, according to Shiera Goff, director of the Montgomery County Office of the Police Chief’s Public Information Office.
Federal authorities said the FBI would be taking over the investigation into the suspect. The FBI’s Baltimore field office said only that it was aware of the incident and was working with law enforcement partners.
Goff did not provide any details about the suspect, referring calls to the FBI.
One official close to the investigation told USA TODAY that the suspect had traveled from California to the Washington area, and that he had a gun. That official also said the suspect was scheduled to appear in federal court Wednesday for a hearing on the case.
