Nicholas John Roske, the man who plotted to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, has become the latest symbol of how ideology is poisoning our justice system. What should have been a straightforward case of attempted murder turned into a bizarre display of judicial activism, identity politics, and outright sympathy for the criminal.
Roske didn’t just threaten Kavanaugh—he made the trip from California to Maryland armed with a Glock pistol, two magazines, a knife, pepper spray, and zip ties. His goal was to murder a sitting Supreme Court justice because he didn’t like the Court’s rulings. The Department of Justice recognized how serious that is and correctly recommended a 30-year prison sentence. Thirty years. That’s what the government thought fit for a man who set out to commit political violence against a member of the Supreme Court.
And yet, when U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman finally read out the sentence, it wasn’t 30 years. It wasn’t even close. Instead, she gave Roske just 97 months—barely over eight years in prison. Eight years for trying to assassinate a Supreme Court justice.
Let that sink in.
So how does someone who admits to such a horrific crime walk away with such a light sentence?
The answer lies in the disturbing mix of politics and woke identity ideology that’s infiltrated the bench. Boardman, a Biden appointee, said she considered President Trump’s executive order on transgender inmates when deciding Roske’s fate. The order, which requires inmates to be housed according to their biological sex, evidently worried her enough to dramatically cut the sentence. Why? Because after pleading guilty last April, Roske up and decided to “identify” as a woman, and now calls himself “Sophie.”
Fox News Digital has more:
In the weeks leading up to the incident, the defendant searched extensively online for information about several justices, mass shooters, ways to harm people and graphic images of people with knife wounds. One search read, "Does twisting or dragging a knife cause more damage."
Roske's internet history also signaled a desire to affect the outcome of the then-looming Dobbs decision, in which the Supreme Court was expected to overturn the federal right to abortion.
The assassination attempt came at a time when activists were protesting in front of conservative justices' homes, leading the DOJ to deploy U.S. marshals to their houses to provide around-the-clock security.
Roske acknowledged noticing marshals at Kavanaugh’s house, which prosecutors said prompted Roske to change course and walk down the street before self-reporting to 911.
During sentencing, Judge Boardman repeatedly referred to Roske with female pronouns and expressed compassion for Roske’s “journey.” She even said, “I am heartened that this terrible infraction has helped the Roske family... accept their daughter [sic] for who she [sic] is.” You read that right—the judge was heartened by an assassination attempt, because it brought a family closer together.
If this were satire, we could laugh it off. But it’s not—and that’s what makes it so frightening.
Adding to the outrage, Boardman has her own history with Kavanaugh that suggests maybe she held a grudge against him.
In 2023, she ruled that parents couldn’t opt their kids out of a public school’s LGBT curriculum—a decision the Supreme Court overturned earlier this year.
This is the judge who ruled against parents in 2023 who wanted to be able to opt their kids out of LGBT curriculum.
— Chuck Ross (@ChuckRossDC) October 3, 2025
The Supreme Court struck down her ruling (Kavanaugh was in the majority) https://t.co/f8pW34ehlc
Justice Kavanaugh was part of the majority in that ruling. Now, two years later, she’s the one holding the gavel over the man who tried to kill him. And in that moment, instead of showing impartiality or respect for the integrity of the court, she handed down a laughably lenient sentence and an ideological sermon.
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