FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA – Law enforcement officials responded late Wednesday night, May 27, 2026, to the Fairfax County, Virginia, residence of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett after an anonymous caller reported a fabricated emergency. The incident, identified as a "swatting" attempt, involved an individual falsely claiming gunshots had been fired at the justice's home, leading to an immediate police deployment.
"Swatting is an attempt to get an innocent person killed—in this case, a sitting Supreme Court Justice. The proper response will be putting the offender in prison for many, many years." — Senator Mike Lee, Utah Republican
The call was placed to the police non-emergency line just after 9 p.m. by an individual who identified themselves as a neighbor of Justice Barrett. Dispatch audio from the Fairfax County Police Department captured an alert to responding units, warning that the situation might not be genuine. "Units responding to suspicious noise, be advised, we have not been able to get an answer on callback to the complainant’s phone number. Unknown if it’s going to be a swatting situation," the dispatcher communicated. The dispatcher also noted the address belonged to a "high-priority resident of the county" with 24-hour security.
Responding officers coordinated with the Supreme Court Police personnel stationed at the residence before proceeding. An officer reported, "Just made contact with security that’s on scene. They should be outside in an Explorer. He said he hasn’t heard anything. We’re just going to meet up with him first, just to go over anything." The Fairfax County Police Department later confirmed in a statement that "Officers immediately coordinated with Supreme Court Police personnel assigned to the residence and quickly determined that the report was fictitious. No additional police resources were utilized." Justice Barrett, who lives at the Virginia home with her husband and children, took her seat on the bench as scheduled the following morning, delivering summaries of two opinions she had authored without public comment on the previous night's events. As of the time of reporting, no arrests have been made, and the caller's identity remains unknown.
The incident drew sharp criticism from Utah Republican Senator Mike Lee, who posted on X, "Swatting is an attempt to get an innocent person killed—in this case, a sitting Supreme Court Justice. The proper response will be putting the offender in prison for many, many years."
This recent event is not an isolated occurrence but rather part of a pattern of increased threats and unwanted attention directed at Supreme Court justices and their families. Following the May 2022 leak of the draft opinion in *Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization*, the ruling that eventually overturned *Roe v. Wade*, the activist group Ruth Sent Us published the residential addresses of several Supreme Court justices, including Justice Barrett's. Protests subsequently occurred outside her home.
The period surrounding the *Dobbs* decision saw a significant escalation in threats. A woman was later sentenced to eight years in prison after pleading guilty to attempting to assassinate Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Authorities apprehended her outside Kavanaugh’s Maryland home, where she was found carrying a handgun, a knife, pepper spray, and burglary tools. During this tumultuous time, then-White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki addressed the demonstrations at justices’ homes, stating, "So, I know that there’s an outrage right now, I guess, about protests that have been peaceful to date, and we certainly continue to encourage that outside of judges’ homes and that’s the President’s position."
Threats against Justice Barrett's family have extended beyond her own residence. In March 2025, her sister, Amanda Coney Williams, received a bomb threat at her Charleston, South Carolina, home. An email sent to the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office falsely claimed a pipe bomb had been placed in her mailbox, though subsequent searches yielded no explosives. Justice Barrett has also publicly acknowledged her family receiving unordered pizzas, an intimidation tactic federal investigators are examining due to similar reports from judges nationwide. Furthermore, an Alaska man recently entered a plea deal with prosecutors after threatening to torture and assassinate justices and their families.
Around-the-clock security for Supreme Court justices was implemented in 2022, directly in response to the surge of threats and protests that followed the *Dobbs* leak. This ongoing security presence played a critical role in the rapid assessment and de-escalation of the recent swatting incident at Justice Barrett's home. The persistent targeting of federal judges underscores growing concerns about judicial security and the integrity of the judicial process, highlighting the need for vigilance against acts intended to disrupt or intimidate those serving in high public office.
