Nicholas John Roske, would-be Kavanaugh assassin, to take guilty plea, defense team says

The California man accused of plotting to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh told a federal judge Wednesday he will plead guilty to the scheme that came about in 2022 over the high court’s pending rulings on abortion and the Second Amendment.  

Attorneys for Nicholas John Roske, 29, sent a letter to U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman about entering the guilty plea and avoiding a scheduled June trial on the attempted assassination charges.

The defense team said federal prosecutors agreed to Mr. Roske’s guilty plea. Both parties would be available for a plea hearing in Maryland federal court as soon as Monday, according to the letter.  

Mr. Roske, who has been in federal custody since his arrest in June 2022, faces up to life behind bars for the offense.

The defendant originally pleaded not guilty to the charges. As recently as January, Mr. Roske was fighting statements he made to police in Montgomery County, Maryland, following his arrest because he argued he was interrogated while struggling with suicidal and homicidal thoughts. 

But Wednesday’s letter said Mr. Roske acknowledged his guilt in the plot to kill Justice Kavanaugh.   

On June 8, 2022, U.S. marshals stationed outside the justice’s home spotted Mr. Roske as he exited a taxi. 

The defendant then walked down the road and called 911 on himself. He said he had traveled from his home in Simi Valley, California, to kill a justice, had a firearm in his suitcase and was having suicidal thoughts, authorities said.

Local police arrived and arrested Mr. Roske. They reported finding in his gear a Glock 17 pistol, tactical vest, tactical knife, ammunition, pepper spray, zip ties and tools, including a crowbar, according to court documents.

Police said Mr. Roske confessed to being angry that the court seemed poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, which established a nationwide right to abortion, and was upset about the way he thought Justice Kavanaugh would rule in that and gun rights cases.

The defendant planned to kill Justice Kavanaugh to give his life a purpose, he told police at the time.