CNN's law enforcement correspondent downplayed a violent threat against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh after an armed California man was arrested outside Kavanaugh's home in Maryland, early Wednesday morning.
Whitney Wild’s initial report on CNN at 11 am EST wondered if the man "had a weapon at all," and did not disclose the violent threat. Law enforcement officials and other networks were already reporting the man was armed with a knife and a gun and admitted to wanting to harm or kill the Supreme Court Justice.
"We don't yet know what the nature of the threat was. We don't know what language the threat was or what kind of weapon this man might have had, if he had one at all, because the information at this point is just so thin," Wild began, while the chyron below her read, "Man with weapon detained near Justice Kavanaugh's home."
The reporter went on to warn about political violence from "both sides" of the abortion debate, after the Supreme Court draft opinion poised to strike down Roe v. Wade was leaked to the media last month.
"This certainly contributes to this overall threat with landscape we've been talking a lot about," she stated. "This is an extremely passionate issue. There are emotions on both sides. Federal officials have made clear over and over they believe the risk truly comes from both sides of this abortion debate."
"People are angry, they might seek to use the abortion ruling as a justification to cause violence and that puts the Supreme Court justices, their staff and other members of this judiciary, especially the Supreme Court, at risk," the CNN reporter concluded. Hours later, Wild updated her report to include that the man was indeed armed with multiple weapons.
Nicholas John Roske, 26, of California, was later charged with attempted murder. According to a criminal complaint and affidavit filed in federal court in Maryland, Wednesday, Roske said he purchased the gun to kill Kavanaugh and himself.
Roske told police he was upset at both the fate of Roe v. Wade and attempts to loosen gun control laws after the Uvalde, Texas shooting.
Pro-choice activists have protested outside the home of conservative justices since the leak. Several groups revealed they still planned to protest outside Kavanaugh's home Wednesday night, despite the violent attempt hours earlier.
Several pro-life centers and churches have been targeted by pro-choice activists as well.
An abortion activist group calling themselves "Jane’s Revenge" has taken credit for several acts of violence, including alleged firebombings of a New York pro-life clinic this week, a Wisconsin pro-life group last month, and vandalism of Seattle-area and Washington D.C. crisis pregnancy centers.
