After witnessing her only child’s murder at the hands of an enraged former litigant in July 2020, U.S. District Judge Esther Salas set out on a mission to ensure her son’s death was not in vain.
This journey reached a watershed moment on Monday when Congress passed legislation named after Salas’ son, Daniel Anderl. The law aims to protect federal judges’ personally identifiable information as well as that of their close relatives.
“By passing this crucial legislation, Congress has taken a solid step in preserving our democracy by protecting federal judges and their families,” Salas said in a statement Monday, adding that the law “will undoubtedly make it harder for violent individuals to find judges’ addresses and other personal information online.”
Salas and her husband, Mark Anderl, we’re celebrating the 20th birthday of their son, Daniel, in July 2020, when a man posing as a delivery driver arrived at their New Jersey home, rang the doorbell, and fatally shot Daniel. Salas’ husband was also shot three times by the assailant. Salas was in the basement at the time of the attack and was unharmed.
According to authorities, the man targeted Salas, New Jersey’s first Hispanic U.S. District judge, after finding her address and personal information online. The man, an anti-feminist activist and lawyer, had vilified Salas online and in a misogynistic book he wrote years after she presided over a civil case in which he represented her.
Salas and her husband were moved by the tragedy to contact their three New Jersey federal representatives: Democrats Sens. Bob Menendez and Cory Booker, and Rep. Mikie Sherrill.
“They explained what they expected to happen. They desired that this bill become his legacy “Menendez stated this during a press conference on Monday.
Sherrill led the effort in the House to pass the legislation, while Booker and Menendez focused their efforts in the Senate.
“We can’t forget that Judge Salas was not just targeted for being a judge. She was targeted for being a woman on the bench, and specifically one of only two Latina judges in the District Court of New Jersey,” Menendez continued. “Judge Salas and her family were victims of a horrific hate crime.”
Congress ultimately passed the Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act on Thursday as part of the annual defence authorization bill.
Salas praised the legislation’s bipartisan support after Menendez’s remarks on Monday.
“I saw them put their differences aside because it was the right thing to do,” Salas explained.
The Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act expressly prohibit the online sale, trade, transfer, or purchase of judges’ personal information. It allows federal judges to request that their information be removed if it is publicly available, and it authorizes the United States Marshals Service to hire additional analysts, security specialists, and other personnel to assist in preventing threats to federal judges.
The bill is expected to be signed into law soon by President Joe Biden.
