New York State Bar Association President Deeply Troubled By Threats To Judges
6.14.2022
Sherry Levin Wallach, president of the New York State Bar Association, issued the following statement on the safety of judges:
As we await a landmark ruling on one of the most divisive social policy questions of our time – the future of abortion rights – Congressional Democrats and Republicans have laid aside their differences to reach a bipartisan agreement on the important matter of protecting Supreme Court justices and their families.
The swiftness with which lawmakers acted was appropriate and welcome, but I am deeply troubled by the event that necessitated this unprecedented action: the arrest of a man reportedly angered by the leaked abortion ruling draft near the Maryland home of Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh.
Our system of government rests on the bedrock principle of adherence to the rule of law. Judges cannot act with true independence if they fear for their own safety or that of their loved ones. Without an independent judiciary, we cannot maintain the system of checks and balances that underpins the Constitution and serves as the crowning achievement of our founding fathers.
The New York State Bar Association calls upon President Joe Biden to immediately sign this important bill into law so Supreme Court justices can fully engage in their constitutional duty to issue rulings without fear or favor.
About the New York State Bar Association
The New York State Bar Association is the largest voluntary state bar association in the nation. Since 1876, NYSBA has helped shape the development of law, educated, and informed the legal profession and the public, and championed the rights of New Yorkers through advocacy and guidance in our communities.
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