Acclaimed author John Grisham has described his intention to write a second book about assassinating Supreme Court Justices. Speaking on The View, Grisham received applause for his comments but quickly clarified that he was joking. Host Joy Behar initiated the conversation, saying the Court has become “scary” and a “lot of people have issues” with the Justices.
Mr. Grisham agreed and said the Court has never “looked so bad” before stating that he has thought about writing a follow-up to his novel The Pelican Brief, in which Justices are murdered. The Mississippi-based writer added that the Court went downhill when “five Republicans” on the bench “decided to elect a President” in 2000. Those remarks referred to the contested 2000 Presidential election between Al Gore and George W. Bush, ultimately decided in the Supreme Court, which awarded Bush the Presidency.
Host Whoopi Goldberg emphasized that Grisham’s remarks on killing Supreme Court judges are “fiction,” but in 2022, a genuine attempt was made. Nicholas John Roske was charged with attempted murder after he approached Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s home with a rucksack containing a Glock 17 pistol. He later called the police and turned himself in, saying he had suicidal thoughts and planned to kill Mr. Kavanaugh in reaction to leaks that the Court intended to overturn the landmark Roe v Wade case that afforded abortion rights across America.
The FBI later described Roske’s online searches and said he had researched how to pull off a high-profile assassination. Searches included where to stab a person to cause maximum damage and what semiautomatic weapons were quietest. On a messaging app, Roske also told users that he intended to stop the Judges from overturning Roe by removing “some people from the Supreme Court.”
Investigation documents reported that the attempted killer wanted to carry out his plot to give his life meaning. After he arrived at Kavanaugh’s home, he contacted his sister, who talked him out of his plan and urged him to turn himself in.
