Washington, July 15 (IANS) US Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett has described taking a bulletproof vest home amid intense threats and having to explain it to her 12-year-old son, as the court sought more money to protect its members and their families.
"When I took this job, I didn't really anticipate being in the position of having to explain to one of my children what a bulletproof vest was and why his mom had it," Barrett told a Senate appropriations subcommittee on Tuesday (local time).
Barrett appeared alongside Justice Elena Kagan at a hearing on the Supreme Court's fiscal year 2027 budget request. The court is seeking an additional $14 million, or a 7 per cent rise, for salaries and operational expenses. Much of its recent budget growth has been driven by security costs.
Barrett said threats against her became particularly intense after the 2022 leak of the court's draft opinion in the Dobbs abortion case. Her security detail then advised her to obtain a bulletproof vest.
"So I took it home from the house, went into my bedroom, threw it down and turned around, and my 12-year-old son was in the doorway, and he said, 'What's that?'" she said.
Barrett also recounted a swatting incident at her home about six weeks ago. Police responded to a false report claiming that gunshots had been fired inside the house.
One of her teenage sons opened the front door to find the street filled with police officers, she said. Her residential security team coordinated with local police before they entered the home.
Barrett said judges and their relatives had also received anonymous deliveries, including pizzas, sometimes sent in the name of the murdered son of a federal district judge.
"They're meant to intimidate, and they're meant to harass," she said. "But it is a very threatening environment."
Kagan told senators that Supreme Court police expect threats against the justices to increase by 38 per cent this year, following a 25 per cent rise last year. Each justice now has a security detail of between four and eight people.
"Life has changed a great deal for all of us," Kagan said. She recalled that when she joined the court in 2010, she walked outside and drove to work without personal protection.
The justices also warned that leaks of confidential court documents could increase security risks and undermine trust within the institution. Barrett said the court had introduced new document-tracking protocols and required employees to sign non-disclosure agreements.
