Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barretts residence in Fairfax County, Virginia, was the scene of a dangerous swatting hoax on Wednesday night, underscoring the escalating campaign of intimidation directed at conservative members of the judiciary.
Officers received a call on their non-emergency line shortly after 9:00 p.m. alleging an emergency at Barretts home and immediately coordinated with the security detail assigned to the property, Fox 5 reported Thursday. According to Breitbart, authorities later determined the report was a hoax, but it remained unclear whether any suspect had been identified or taken into custody.
Police radio traffic captured the tense moments as officers checked on the justices home. One officer was heard telling a dispatcher, Just made contact with security thats on scene. They should be outside in an Explorer. He said he hasnt heard anything.
The caller reportedly claimed to have heard gunshots in the area, according to Fox News. Such fabricated reports are designed to trigger a heavily armed law-enforcement response, placing both the intended target and responding officers in needless danger.
The incident comes amid years of heightened threats against Supreme Court justices, including protests outside conservative justices homes after the leaked Dobbs draft opinion in 2022 showing the court was poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, the outlet reported, and the arrest near Justice Brett Kavanaughs home of a California man who was later charged with attempted murder. These threats have overwhelmingly focused on justices appointed by Republican presidents, reflecting the lefts ongoing campaign to pressure and delegitimize the Court when it resists progressive priorities.
After several swatting incidents targeting conservative commentators and journalists in March 2025, Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) condemned the tactic in stark terms. He called those instances domestic terrorism and attempted murder, according to Breitbart News.
The term swatting refers to an anonymous attacker targeting someone by making a false call to emergency services using anonymous tools like Google Voice or VPNs to make it appear the call is coming from a certain location and telling authorities a murder or hostage event is transpiring at a particular address. Swatting is designed to prompt SWAT teams to arrive at the targeted home and descend on unsuspecting victims, which in the past has led to deadly encounters and murder charges for the offender.
Barrett returned to the bench on Thursday and did not mention the incident, according to the Fox article. In June, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel said his home was swatted, further highlighting how political figures and conservative officials are increasingly being targeted by lawless actors seeking to weaponize emergency services.
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