The Department of Homeland Security this week issued a memo warning of violent threats made against Supreme Court justices if the court should overturn Roe v. Wade.
The memo, which was obtained by NBC News, states that threats against Supreme Court justices and other public officials "are likely to persist and may increase leading up to and following the issuing of the Court's official ruling" on Roe v. Wade.
"Some of these threats discussed burning down or storming the U.S. Supreme Court and murdering Justices and their clerks, members of Congress, and lawful demonstrators," it continues.
The memo was released following the leak of a draft decision that outlined a possible plan to overturn the rulings in Roe v. Wade and the later Supreme Court decision in the case of Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
"DHS is committed to protecting Americans' freedom of speech and other civil rights and civil liberties, including the right to peacefully protest," a spokesperson for the department told Newsweek.
"DHS is also committed to working with our partners across every level of government and the private sector to share timely information and intelligence, prevent all forms of violence, and to support law enforcement efforts to keep our communities safe," they added.
Jonathan Wackrow, a former U.S. Secret Service special agent who now works as a risk management consultant, told Axios that the recent mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, "complicated everything even more."
He added: "The attack in Buffalo actually has a measured impact on this Roe decision and how people will react to it. You see that people are willing to engage in the most violent acts in furtherance of that ideology."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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