FBI Had Investigative Interest in Protests at Justices’ Homes, but Apparently Took No Action, Document Reveals

The FBI indicated its investigative interest in pro-abortion protests last summer outside the homes of Supreme Court justices, although the bureau apparently didn’t act, according to a document obtained by The Daily Signal.

After someone leaked the court’s draft majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization on May 2, protesters demonstrated for months outside the Virginia residences of Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Samuel Alito, and Clarence Thomas, and the Maryland homes of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

Just days after the leak of the draft opinion that ultimately would overturn Roe v. Wade and abortion on demand, the FBI issued a report to multiple FBI field offices, Virginia State Police, and possibly other police departments, highlighting news articles of interest. 

 Several of the articles were about pro-abortion activists holding protests outside the homes of the Supreme Court’s six conservative justices. 

After each news article listed in the FBI’s May 12 report, acronyms indicate which FBI offices have jurisdiction and an investigative interest in each event.

The Daily Signal obtained the FBI report through a Freedom of Information Act request to Virginia State Police. The FBI normally doesn’t release information to the public regarding items of investigative interest, indicating that Virginia State Police may have released the document to The Daily Signal in error. 

The report links to a Daily Mail story with the extended headline, “The left-wing firebrands backing protests at SCOTUS judges’ houses.”

“What that FOIA revealed is that there is an FBI investigative interest in these stories. Why else would the FBI highlight them as being relevant to the Washington Field Office, the Baltimore Field Office, and multiple other field offices?” Roman Jankowski, senior investigative counsel on The Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project told The Daily Signal. (The Daily Signal is Heritage’s multimedia news organization.) 

“Unfortunately, regardless of the theoretical investigative interest in [the] political violence of such groups as Ruth Sent Us or Jane’s Revenge, the FBI has demonstrated no interest in pursuing any investigate activity that targets any persons who are proponents for abortions,” Jankowski said.

Why It Matters 

Protesting outside the home of a judge or justice in an attempt to influence a ruling is a violation of federal law.

The relevant federal law, 18 U.S.C. §1507, states: “Whoever, with the intent of interfering with, obstructing, or impeding the administration of justice, or with the intent of influencing any judge … in the discharge of his duty, pickets or parades … in or near a building or residence occupied or used by such judge … shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year or both.” 

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