Would Be Supreme Court Justice Assassin Only Gets 8 Years Because He is Transgender [WATCH]

The man convicted of attempting to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2022 was sentenced to just over eight years in prison on Friday.

The sentencing took place nearly three years after Nicholas Roske, who now identifies as transgender and goes by the name Sophie, traveled from California to Maryland with the stated intent of killing the justice at his home.

The planned attack occurred as the Supreme Court was deliberating over the case that ultimately overturned Roe v. Wade.

Prosecutors said Roske’s motivation was to prevent the Court from changing abortion law.

Federal prosecutors had requested a minimum sentence of 30 years.

However, U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, handed down a sentence of just over eight years.

Roske will also serve a lifetime of supervised release.

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Court documents showed that Roske researched weapons and surveillance equipment before flying across the country in June 2022.

He was arrested near Kavanaugh’s home after noticing a visible law enforcement presence and deciding not to carry out the attack.

Authorities found him carrying a Glock 17 pistol, ammunition, zip ties, pepper spray, a crowbar, tactical gloves, a lock pick set, and a thermal imaging monocular.

Roske admitted to law enforcement that his plan was to kill Kavanaugh, and he also expressed threats toward other justices.

He told the court at sentencing, “I have been portrayed as a monster, and this tragic mistake I made will follow me for the rest of my life.”

Judge Boardman cited several reasons for the reduced sentence, including Roske’s decision to abandon the plan, his lack of prior criminal history, and expressions of remorse.

She also noted that under current prison policies, Roske would be housed in a male facility despite identifying as transgender, an issue she said factored into her ruling.

🚨BREAKING: The WANNA-BE ASSASSIN who almost killed Justice Brett Kavanaugh just CAME OUT as TRANS 🚨

Nicholas Roske now “IDENTIFIES” as Sophie Roske pic.twitter.com/hWL5ndpO4u

— Jesse Watters (@JesseBWatters) September 20, 2025

“What Sophie Roske did, devising and nearly executing a plan to kill a Supreme Court justice in an attempt to change a Supreme Court ruling and the composition of the court is absolutely reprehensible and will be punished,” Boardman said from the bench.

Daily Wire reporter Luke Rosiak, who was present in the courtroom, reported that Judge Boardman consistently referred to Roske with female pronouns and raised questions about whether the defendant would be placed in a women’s prison or provided hormone treatments.

Rosiak said the judge also questioned whether longer prison sentences actually provided more deterrence and asked why Roske, three years later, should be considered a continued threat.

Roske’s mother spoke in court, telling the judge she had attended PFLAG meetings to learn more about the LGBTQ+ community.

“I am committed to going on this journey with Sophie,” she said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Coreen Mao pushed for a much harsher sentence, warning that Roske remained a danger.

“Roske poses a very real threat to our system of government,” Mao said.

She added, “No judge or public official should have to live under the fear thinking that any moment at any given day at any given time they could be killed in cold blood simply for doing their job.”

The incident marked one of the most serious threats against a Supreme Court justice in modern history.

The attempted assassination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh was a disgusting attack against our entire judicial system by a profoundly disturbed individual. @TheJusticeDept will be appealing the woefully insufficient sentence imposed by the district court, which does not…

— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) October 3, 2025

The Biden-Harris administration has supported policies allowing transgender inmates to be placed in women’s prisons and receive taxpayer-funded medical treatments while incarcerated, though those measures were restricted under executive orders signed by President Trump.

Judge Boardman acknowledged that those policies and their reversals influenced her decision.

Despite prosecutors’ arguments for a lengthy sentence, the final ruling leaves Roske eligible for release in just over eight years, though he will remain under lifetime federal supervision.

The attempted assassination brought renewed attention to security surrounding the nation’s highest court and the political tensions surrounding its rulings.