State Courts Plead for More Security Funding as Threats Rise

Self-defense courses. Internet anonymity services. Sheriff escorts to and from their jobs.

This is the life of a judge in 2025, according to a panel of state supreme court justices from across the country that assembled in Madison, Wis., to discuss challenges facing courts, including how partisan rhetoric—and escalating battles with state legislatures—have imperiled the lives of state judges.

New Mexico Supreme Court Justice C. Shannon Bacon said that legislators wouldn’t budge on judicial security, despite armed protesters marching in front of the state high court—where the only security was a security guard at the front desk.

Then an explosive ...