The man accused of planning an assassination attempt against Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh decided Friday to reject statements he made to investigators and what he said was a search and seizure of his property without warrant.
Nicholas Roske told a federal court he had suicidal and homicidal thoughts on June 8, 2022, outside Judge Kavanaugh’s home, where he called 911, saying he needed psychiatric help .
He had texted his sister telling her he loved her, so she called him to check on him and convinced him not to hurt anyone and call the authorities.
Mr. Roske called 911 and was greeted by a Maryland police officer who he said questioned him without granting Miranda rights. Miranda rights – the right to remain silent and have an attorney present, among other warnings – must be afforded to a defendant before interrogation.
His lawyers acknowledge that he later received Miranda warnings once at the police station, but was not in the right mental state to waive his rights.
“Although federal agents informed Mr. Roske of his rights and obtained his signature on a waiver of rights form, this waiver was not made voluntarily and intelligently. At the time, Mr. Roske was extremely suicidal, visibly exhausted, and had repeatedly expressed his need for psychiatric care,” the filing states.
His lawyers say these statements violate his 5th Amendment right and should be suppressed.
During his 911 call, the dispatcher told Mr. Roske to put his bags – which contained a gun – away from him when police arrived. He stood about 20 yards from the bags and told the dispatcher he had been hospitalized several times for thinking about harming himself. He told authorities what was in his bags.
Mr. Roske claims the search of his pockets and property without a warrant violated the 4th Amendment.
He is scheduled to go to trial in June after his lawyers and the prosecution failed to reach a plea deal.
The trial, which is scheduled to begin on June 9, will take place approximately three years after his first arrest. He remains in detention since his arrest.
Mr Roske has pleaded not guilty after being accused of attempting to assassinate a Supreme Court judge. He could spend the rest of his life in prison.
Mr. Roske traveled from California to Judge Kavanaugh’s home in Maryland in 2022 after the unprecedented leak of the draft opinion revealing that the high court was poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark case giving women a national right to abortion. He was motivated by court rulings regarding abortion and expanded gun rights, according to court records.
The case is pending before U.S. District Judge Peter Messitte, a Clinton appointee.
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