Supreme Court chief justice calls for deference to judiciary

Chief Justice John Roberts on Tuesday wrote that the independence of the federal judicial system was under attack. He called for authorities to address four different threats to maintain the independence of the judiciary—which he argued was a cornerstone of American democracy. Federal courts are threatened by violence, intimidation, disinformation and defiance, he wrote.

The Constitution’s Article III provides for an independent, federal judiciary with the final authority to decide questions arising under it and under other federal laws. Roberts quoted his predecessor, Chief Justice John Rehnquist, who said that creating an independent judiciary was America’s greatest contribution to the art of government. Roberts argued that while the judiciary is not infallible, it is essential.

How did Roberts describe those four threats?

• Violence: In recent years there has been a significant spike in the amount of violence directed at federal judges just doing their jobs, Roberts said. The U.S. Marshals Service reported that the number of threats directed at judges has tripled in the past decade, Roberts said. And in the past five years, the Marshals Service investigated more than 1,000 threats against judges. Acts of violence against judges have also become more frequent, the chief justice said.

• Intimidation: Judges have become victims of doxing, or having their personal information published, by frustrated litigants in recent years, Roberts said. Critics have also targeted them and their decisions because of their race, gender, or ethnicity. Even public officials have engaged in that intimidating sort of behavior, Roberts added.

• Disinformation: Distortions of the factual and legal basis of judicial decisions undermine trust in the country’s legal system, Roberts said. He acknowledged that judges are ill-suited to combat disinformation, as they often speak only through their decisions and don’t call press conferences or issue rebuttals. Hostile foreign powers are a primary source of disinformation campaigns against judges, Roberts said.

• Defiance: If the other branches of government aren’t willing to enforce lawful decrees issued by the judiciary, then American democracy is in jeopardy, Roberts said. It is generally not the job of the judiciary to make everyone happy, the chief justice said. Every presidential administration suffers defeats in the courtroom, he added. Continuing to respect the authority of the judiciary to determine the lawfulness of various actions remains essential, Roberts said.

Dig deeper: Read Travis K. Kircher’s report in The Sift about the legal battle surrounding a law regulating minors’ social media use in Florida.