WASHINGTON—The parents and family of Nicholas Roske are arguing that their son, the man who attempted to kill Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, should be treated leniently and given an opportunity to “thrive” as a transgender woman, court documents show.

In startling letters dated September 19, Roske’s family describes the 29-year-old attempted assassin as “Sophie,” use female pronouns to describe Roske, and pushes for leniency for their family member, who pleaded guilty to the attempt to kill a United States Supreme Court Justice in April 2025, three years after authorities arrested him in Kavanaugh’s neighborhood, carrying a bag full of weapons and burglary tools.

The family pleaded with Judge Deborah Boardman, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, that “Sophie” needs therapy, relaxation, and the outdoors in order for him to ultimately “thrive.” His sister specifically expresses fears about him being placed in a male prison “with limited access to gender affirming care.”

The Daily Wire first reported last month that Roske’s legal team told the court he identifies as transgender and would be referred to as “Sophie.” It now appears, based on the family letters, that this is potentially part of its legal strategy.

“Placing Sophie in long term incarceration would stunt her ability to thrive and severely impact her overall life trajectory,” writes Olivia Roske, the gay sister of the attempted assassin. “Sophie needs a balanced life and appropriate support from loving people, not incarceration. Luckily, she has many loved ones eager to show her support, and we need her home in order to fully provide that to her.”

“Sophie has so much to offer the [world],” Roske’s sister insists, “and I ask that you allow her to live that out fully.”

Justice Department attorneys are recommending that Roske be given 30 years in prison. They ask that the court’s sentence “must send the unequivocal, clear, and strong message that attempted violence and threats of violence against members of the judiciary — as well as other public and federal officials — cannot and will not be tolerated, and will be justly and severely condemned.”

READ MORE: Attempted Kavanaugh Assassin Identifies As Transgender Woman, Legal Filings Show

They specifically state that the court’s sentence must be significant enough to not only “reflect the harm sought to be inflicted on the judiciary,” but also to send a message that the “consequences for these acts — no fewer than 30 years to life in prison — are not worth the perceived ideological ends.”

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Roske’s family, on the other hand, believes he would do better at home with them. Their repeated references to Roske’s transgender identity indicate that they believe Boardman may be swayed towards a lighter sentence out of compassion for Roske’s gender identity. Over and over, Roske’s father, mother, sister, grandparents, uncle, and friends harken back to his mental health difficulties and suggest that prison life is too hard for Roske to endure as a trans-identifying individual.

In 2023, Boardman notably denied the request of a group of Maryland parents who had asked that Montgomery County Public Schools allow them to opt their kids out of lessons that included LGBTQ books (the Supreme Court ruled this summer that the school system had violated the parents’ rights).

(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

“Sophie has had to face many challenges but remains positive, hopeful,” writes Roske’s mother, in a letter promising over and over to help and affirm her son in his transgender identity should he be allowed out of prison. “I have seen evidence of this during her incarceration. She is persevering. Over the past three years she has matured, reflecting on what happened and how to never have it happen again.”

Roske’s father argues that during the COVID-19 pandemic, Roske grew fearful of getting the virus or giving it to others, as well as “anxious about what COVID meant for the future,” since he had been accepted to get his master’s and possibly a doctorate in philosophy on the East Coast. Roske then moved to Seattle, where he lived for several months without a job before moving home and beginning to substitute teach. Shortly thereafter, when the school year ended, Roske then flew from California to Maryland to attempt to assassinate Kavanaugh.

“She does better with structure,” wrote Roske’s father. “Clear rules and a schedule will be given when she comes back to live with us. I think she would benefit from some assistance with developing organization and life skills. We will also work on teaching her how to do her own planning and organizing.”

Roske’s family describes him as smart and curious from a young age, an individual who excelled academically and loved philosophical conversations. Roske was an Eagle Scout, they shared, and was very active in the Boy Scouts. He was also homeschooled, his uncle wrote, but went to public school for high school, “isolating her from many of the friend groups that had already been formed,” and causing him to struggle to make friends, “leaving her marginalized.”

Roske’s uncle writes that his nephew deeply struggled with mental health: “She exhibited many of the signs of a troubled young adult. She had difficulties finding meaningful purpose, both personally and professionally, spending many hours isolated at home on the computer, withdrawn from life’s daily tasks.”

“Sophie is too smart for her own good,” writes his grandmother. “Frustration follows her around … I think she was trying to find herself and couldn’t find a place to fit in. Hopefully she is finding her way. She has a [lot] to offer.”

While Roske’s mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, and uncle all refer to him as “Sophie,” his cousin Daniel, his other uncle, Timothy, and his aunt Tjjohn refer to him as “Nicholas/Sophie,” and use the pronoun “they” to refer to his cousin, rather than “she” — perhaps an indication that they might not be as bought into Roske’s transgender identification as the rest of the family. Roske’s cousin insists that what Roske did “was a mistake” and asks that the court “look at the contents of this and the other letters written on Nicholas/Sophie’s behalf and determine a fair sentencing.”

Roske’s aunt Tjjohn specifically notes: “Nicholas/Sophie has always had a sense of what they believe to be right and wrong. The incident of the Uvalde [school] shooting and the overturning of Roe v. Wade upset them. Yes, they had a plan and intended to enact that plan. However, at some point, their conscience kicked in and had the wherewithal to call their sister.”

September DOJ filings show that Roske “meticulously researched, planned, and attempted to assassinate at least one — but had a stated target of three — sitting judges of the United States Supreme Court” with the “explicit objective” of “single-handedly” altering “the Constitutional order for ideological ends.” He conducted internet searches for the homes of the four Justices, purchased a Glock 17 pistol, ammunition, a rail-mounted tactical light with a laser sight, tactical gloves, non-slip grip socks, cable ties, pepper spray, a lock-pick set, a screwdriver, and a wrecking bar.

“My mental health is too poor for me to fear death,” he wrote on Discord on March 18, 2022, to another user, according to the DOJ filing. “But prison sounds worse. To be monitored to the point where you can’t even kill yourself. So if I did kill someone I would definitely try to get away with it.”

Court filings show that Roske described himself as “actively suicidal” and said he wanted to “do something positive before I die” by taking out Kavanaugh before the justice could vote to overturn Roe v. Wade. He found Kavanaugh’s neighborhood online after he saw an article with a “picture of the family’s house,” including the house number, because far-left activists had posted the addresses of the justices online in an attempt to intimidate them into preserving Roe.

In May 2022, POLITICO published a leaked draft Supreme Court opinion showing that the court was poised to overturn Roe, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision establishing a constitutional right to an abortion. That leak prompted Roske’s journey from California to Maryland.

“When I saw the leaked draft, it made me upset and then it made me want to — I don’t know,” he told authorities. “I was under the delusion that I could make the world a better place by killing him.”

Pro-life advocates are demanding answers from the White House after the FDA approved a new abortion pill in a “shocking” decision earlier this week.

The FDA on Tuesday gave approval for Evita Solutions to distribute mifepristone, a drug that is used to end the life of an unborn child in up to 63% of all abortions. After a pregnant woman takes mifepristone, her unborn child is cut off from the nutrients it needs to survive and is effectively starved to death. A different drug is then taken to induce labor and expel the deceased baby from the mother. 

The fatal drug has been increasingly available after the Biden administration allowed it to be mailed by doctors. Leftist activists ship the drugs illegally across the country with impunity. 

Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) called the approval “shocking” and said he had lost faith in FDA leadership. 

“This is shocking. FDA has just approved ANOTHER chemical abortion drug, when the evidence shows chemical abortion drugs are dangerous and even deadly for the mother. And of course 100% lethal to the child,” Hawley wrote on X. 

“FDA had promised to do a top-to-bottom safety review of the chemical abortion drug, but instead they’ve just greenlighted new versions of it for distribution. I have lost confidence in the leadership at FDA,” he added. 

Rep. Mark Harris (R-NC) also questioned the move.

“Wow! The FDA just approved a generic version of the abortion pill, Mifepristone, a drug that ends a baby’s life 100% of the time and harms mothers. The FDA announced a new safety study just days ago, so why this new move now?” he wrote on X.

Only two other drug companies, Danco Labs and Genbiopro, were previously approved to distribute the life-ending drug. The FDA wrote to Evita Solutions on September 30 that it had “concluded that adequate information has been presented to demonstrate that the drug meets the requirements for approval.”

Evita Solutions says on its website that “medical abortion care is rife with medically unnecessary restrictions and social stigma in the United States” and that it “believes that all people should have access to safe, affordable, high-quality, effective, and compassionate abortion care, regardless of their race, sex, gender, age, sexuality, income, or where they live.”

In response to questions about the drug’s approval, Health and Human Services Communications Director Andrew Nixon told The Daily Wire that the FDA “has very limited discretion in deciding whether to approve a generic drug. By law, the Secretary of Health and Human Services must approve an application if it demonstrates that the generic drug is identical to the brand-name drug.”

Nixon added that applicants for generic drugs do not need to submit independent evidence proving safety and efficacy. 

“HHS is conducting a study of the reported adverse effects of mifepristone to ensure the FDA’s risk mitigation program for the drug is sufficient to protect women from unstated risks,” Nixon added. “The FDA does not endorse any drug product and directs prescribers to follow all labeling.”

The decision is already drawing backlash from pro-life advocates who have long warned about the dangers of the drug. Kelsey Pritchard, the director of state affairs for SBA Pro-Life America, called the decision “reckless.”

“This does nothing to help and fix the problem that we have with abortion drugs and mail-order abortion drugs, and instead puts a cheap drug on the market so that more unborn lives are taken and more women and girls end up in the ER,” she told The Daily Wire. 

Pritchard said that the Trump administration should reinstate restrictions on the mailing of mifepristone that the Biden administration loosened. 

“This decision is not MAGA. It is not MAHA, adding a new life ending drug to the market doesn’t make America greater or healthier, and this is not something that we would expect, especially at this time,” she added, calling for pro-life Republicans to call out the decision. 

Last month, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary told Republican attorneys general that they were studying the safety of mifepristone. Some studies have shown that the drug is not only fatal to the unborn child but can also bring serious health risks to the mother.