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Durbin calls on DOJ to investigate anonymous pizza deliveries to judges’ homes
The top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee has called on the Department of Justice and the FBI to «immediately investigate» a string of anonymous pizza deliveries sent to judges’ homes.
In the event that the DOJ and the FBI have already initiated investigations, Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dick Durbin, D-Ill., also asked Attorney General Pam Bondi and Kash Patel for an update on those efforts.
«In recent months, federal judges and their relatives have received anonymous deliveries to their homes,» Durbin wrote in a letter to Bondi and Patel on Tuesday. «These deliveries are threats intended to show that those seeking to intimidate the targeted judge know the judge’s address or their family members’ addresses. The targeted individuals reportedly include Supreme Court justices, judges handling legal cases involving the Administration, and the children of judges. Some of these deliveries were made using the name of Judge Esther Salas’s son, Daniel Anderl, who was murdered at the family’s home by a former litigant who posed as a deliveryman.»
JUDGE WHOSE SON WAS KILLED REACTS TO SHOCKING ATTACK ON NEVADA JUDGE
Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., speaks following the weekly Senate luncheon at the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 3, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
«These incidents threaten not only judges and their families, but also judicial independence and the rule of law,» Durbin wrote. «It is imperative that the Justice Department (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigate these anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and that those responsible be held accountable to the full extent of the law.»
Durbin asked that Bondi and Patel provide «information on any steps that DOJ or the FBI have taken to protect the judges and their families who have received anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and to prevent further anonymous or pseudonymous deliveries and other threats.» His letter also highlighted «the essential role that the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) plays in protecting the federal judiciary and urge you to ensure that the size of the USMS workforce is not reduced.»
The Democrat said USMS Acting Director Mark P. Pittella reportedly sent a letter on April 15 to more than 5,000 USMS employees offering them the opportunity to resign.
«In the midst of increasing threats of violence against judges, it is inappropriate and unacceptable to reduce the size of the agency tasked with protecting the federal judiciary and the judicial process,» Durbin wrote. «Accordingly, I ask you to commit to fully supporting USMS and to maintaining or increasing its current number of employees.»
The letter further asked that Bondi and Patel brief the committee and provide responses to a series of questions by May 20, including how many anonymous pizza deliveries have been sent to judges’ homes or the homes of their family members since Jan. 20 – President Donald Trump’s Inauguration Day; whether each matter prompted an investigation and if not, why; and how many suspects have been identified and if there’s any reason to suspect coordination.
Durbin said any responses with «classified or law-enforcement sensitive material» should be sent to the committee Democrats under a separate cover.
Attorney General Pam Bondi is seen announcing a major drug bust on Tuesday. (Justice Department)
‘60 MINUTES’ SEGMENT PAINTS TRUMP AS THREAT TO COUNTRY’S LEGAL SYSTEM AMID LAWSUIT
The letter only named one impacted judge – U.S. District Judge Esther Salas.
Salas’ 20-year-old son, Daniel Anderl, was murdered on July 19, 2020, at the family’s home in North Brunswick, New Jersey. The gunman, who posed as a FedEx delivery driver, also critically wounded Salas’ husband. The suspect was identified as Roy Den Hollander, a self-proclaimed anti-feminist lawyer who previously appeared in Salas’ courtroom. Authorities said Den Hollander died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in upstate New York days after killing Daniel.
Before the shooting, Salas had handled high-profile cases, including those involving Jeffrey Epstein and the Real Housewives of New Jersey stars Teresa and Joe Giudice.
Last month, Salas told news outlets that she and other judges have received strange pizza deliveries at their homes, with at least 10 of them having her son’s name on the order.
In March, Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s family members reported receiving strange pizza deliveries to separate households, Newsweek reported. Authorities said Barrett’s sister also received a bomb threat.
Kash Patel testifies during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Jan. 30, 2025. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
J. Michelle Childs of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit also claimed in a podcast last month that a mysterious pizza delivery had arrived at her door.
«Federal judges are receiving anonymous deliveries as an intimidation tactic. It’s an ongoing threat… and it’s increasing,» Durbin wrote on X. «Some deliveries are even using the name of a judge’s son who was murdered by a former litigant posing as a deliveryman. Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Patel must investigate.»
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«Judges are facing ongoing and increasing threats… even against their families,» Senate Judiciary Democrats said on X. «Pam Bondi must commit to fully supporting the Marshals Service and—at minimum—maintaining the current size of its workforce.»
Fox News Digital reached out to the Justice Department and the FBI for comment early Wednesday but did not immediately hear back.
Senate Democrats,Judiciary,Supreme Court,Justice Department,FBI,Pam Bondi,Kash Patel
INTERNACIONAL
Tourists in Mexican seaside city told to stay on resort as government warns of ‘clashes’
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Tourists in the Mexican seaside city of Puerto Vallarta were told not to leave their resort on Sunday as a government official warned of «clashes» in the area following a federal operation.
Photos and video shared with Fox News Digital capture billowing, dark smoke clouding the skyline of the city, which is located on Mexico’s Pacific Coast in the state of Jalisco.
Tourists at a local resort told Fox News Digital that they were urged to stay put at the resort. They said no reason for exercising the caution was immediately given.
The U.S. State Department later issued a travel warning for multiple areas in Mexico on Sunday afternoon, urging U.S. citizens to shelter in place until further notice due to «ongoing security operations and related road blockages and criminal activity.»
US OFFICIALS WARN SNOWBIRDS OF ‘VIOLENT CRIME’ IN WINTER DESTINATION HOT SPOT
Smoke was seen rising into the skies of Puerto Vallarta in Mexico’s Jalisco state on Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
The travel warning was issued for parts of Jalisco state, including Puerto Vallarta, Chapala and Guadalajara; Tamaulipas state, including Reynosa and other municipalities; and areas of Michoacan state, Guerrero state and Nuevo Leon state.
Jalisco Gov. Pablo Lemus Navarro announced in a post on X that federal forces carried out an «operation» in the town of Tapalpa earlier Sunday, which led to «clashes» in the area.
«Also as a result of said operation, in various points of that region and in other parts of Jalisco, individuals have burned and blocked vehicles with the aim of hindering the actions of the authorities,» Navarro wrote in the post in Spanish.
In multiple posts, Navarro wrote that «the violent incidents have spread» and «blockades have shifted» as the government and law enforcement work to safeguard citizens.
ALLEGED SINALOA CARTEL FENTANYL PRODUCER CHARGED IN NEWLY UNSEALED FEDERAL INDICTMENT
Navarro added that the government has enacted a «Code Red» to keep the public safe.
Tourists said they were told not to leave their resort in Puerto Vallarta on Sunday. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
«We reiterate the recommendation to avoid leaving your homes,» Navarro wrote in a second post. «The clashes are occurring in several federal entities.»
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While government officials did not immediately provide details about the federal operation, local news outlets report that the operation may have involved the Jalisco New Generation cartel and one of its notorious leaders, Nemesio «El Mencho» Oseguera Cervantes.
location mexico,puerto vallarta,mexican cartel violence,world
INTERNACIONAL
La historia de “El Mencho”: cómo el líder del CJNG se convirtió en uno de los narcotraficantes más buscados en el mundo
Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, teniendo más de 50 año de edad, llegó a la cumbre de su carrera criminal. Identificado como líder del Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación, Oseguera, conocido como El Mencho se convirtió en el hombre más buscado de México y Estados Unidos.
Es el segundo mexicano más buscado por Estados Unidos. El primero es Rafael Caro Quintero, El Narco de Narcos, por el asesinato de Enrique Kiki Camarena, ex agente de la DEA (Administración de Control de Drogas, por sus siglas en inglés) de EEUU. Pero inmediatamente después, en la lista de los más buscados, figura el rostro de Nemesio Oseguera, El Mencho, líder del CJNG.
La historia de Oseguera Cervantes es extraordinaria porque la gran mayoría de narcos mexicanos de su generación han sido apresados o han muerto violentamente.
Según la acusación del Departamento de Justicia de EEUU, El Mencho dirigió el CJNG ―o su versión embrionaria― al menos desde el año 2000 y logró expandirlo a la mayoría de los estados de México y a varias ciudades de los Estados Unidos. Sus primeros pasos en el narco los dio, sin embargo, bastante antes.
En Naranjo de Chila ―un pueblo al sureste de Michoacán― nació el 17 de julio de 1966 Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, uno de los seis hermanos de una familia de productores de aguacate.
Dicen que lo bautizaron con el nombre de Rubén y él se hizo llamar Nemesio en honor a su padrino. También que su cuna es el municipio de Naranjo de Chila y otros que fue Uruapan o Aguililla. Tal vez fue este último porque allí, apenas siendo un niño que recién abandonaba la escuela en el quinto año de primaria, se contrató para cuidar los campos de aguacate, propiedad de los Valencia.
De esta familia, conocida primero como el Cártel del Aguacate (porque traficaba la marihuana escondida en los cargamentos de ese fruto), nació el Cártel del Milenio cuando saltaron a la siembra de marihuana y amapola. Tan poderosos eran en su tierra que uno de ellos, José, incluso llegó a alcalde en 1989, postulado por el PRD. Con ellos, apenas adolescente, El Mencho se hizo vigilante de los plantíos y traficante después.
Sin embargo, debió haber soñado con algo más que aguacates, porque en pocos años empacó y se mudó al norte de California, Estados Unidos.
A los 20 años, para 1986, ya había emigrado a Estados Unidos. Vivía en la bahía de San Francisco, en California, donde se involucró con una banda de tráfico de heroína y metanfetamina e intentó construir una red de clientes como dealer. El periodista estadounidense Josh Eells, en un reportaje publicado en la revista Rolling Stone y con base en información de autoridades de Estados Unidos, afirma que Abigael González Valencia, El Cuini, cuñado de Oseguera Cervantes, lo formó en el negocio de las drogas.
Fue detenido en 1986 cuando él y su hermano mayor, Abraham Oseguera, vendieron heroína a dos policías encubiertos; en 1992 fueron enviados a una prisión federal y luego deportados. Una foto de reserva del incidente muestra al Mencho, de 19 años, con una sudadera con capucha y con acné en la cara.
Dos meses después, nació su primer hija: Jessica Johanna Oseguera.
Al salir de prisión, en 1997, se enroló como policía municipal en Tomatlán, Jalisco. Allí se vinculó con los hermanos Nava Valencia del Cártel del Milenio, y con Nacho Coronel, del Cártel del Pacífico, como también llamaban a la organización criminal del Chapo Guzmán.
Con ellos, al dejar la policía, El Mencho se convirtió en una especie de consejero de seguridad y una pieza estratégica en el tráfico de drogas sintéticas a Estados Unidos gracias a su experiencia en aquel país, de acuerdo con Eells.
Desde la formación del CJNG en 2011, El Mencho pronto logró expandirse en casi todo México y tiene presencia internacional en Estados Unidos, Colombia y, sin confirmar, en Canadá, Argentina, Holanda, Ghana, Nigeria, Marruecos, Rusia, China, Corea del Sur, Alemania, Perú, Centroamérica, Bolivia, Malasia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Polonia, Australia, y Camboya, con lo que habría superado en 2018 al Cártel de Sinaloa en el tráfico de alucinógenos, de acuerdo con diversos reportes.
Oseguera Cervantes supuestamente se escondía en las montañas de Jalisco y, según la prensa local, padece insuficiencia renal, un mal que lo mantenía con diálisis y atado a una cama, por lo que la organización sería dirigida por sus lugartenientes.
En febrero de 2020, los gobiernos de México y de EEUU dieron un golpe al criminal cuando el hijo del Mencho, Rubén Oseguera González, El Menchito, fue extraditado, y su hija, Jessica Johanna Oseguera González, fue detenida mientras acudía a una de las audiencias de su hermano.
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«I can’t believe they just left!»
«Why didn’t they just stay until they fixed it?»
«Why didn’t they make them stay?»
I must have fielded forty questions last week from colleagues, friends and acquaintances. Even reporters and editorial staff from other news organizations. And that’s to say nothing of a few Congressional aides.
Everyone had the same question. They were in disbelief that lawmakers just abandoned the Capitol a week ago Thursday and left the Department of Homeland Security without funding on Saturday at 12:00:01 am et.
COAST GUARD CAUGHT AS ‘COLLATERAL DAMAGE’ IN DEMOCRATS’ DHS SHUTDOWN AS CHINA, RUSSIA PRESS US WATERS
Senate Democrats blocked a short-term funding bill, stalling efforts to keep DHS and its agencies operating. (Photo by Heather Diehl/Getty Images)
The Senate tried twice to avert the partial government shutdown on Thursday. The Senate failed to break a filibuster on a placeholder, undetermined funding bill. And then Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., objected to a request by Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., to approve a stopgap, two-week funding bill. Passage of the bill would require agreement of all 100 senators. But all it took was one objection. And Murphy, speaking for many Democrats on both sides of the Capitol, interceded to sidetrack Britt’s effort.
«I’m over it!» shouted an exasperated Britt on the Senate floor, as Congress pitched at least part of the federal government into its third shutdown since October 1.
Democrats are refusing to fund the Department of Homeland Security until there’s a specific agreement to reform U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). And – few Democrats will say this out loud – but their base insists on Democrats shuttering DHS over ICE tactics after the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
This is somewhat ironic. Republicans funded ICE through 2029 via last year’s One, Big, Beautiful Bill. So thanks to Democrats, TSA, the Coast Guard and FEMA – all under the DHS aegis – are without money right now. That means tens of thousands of employees are technically working without paychecks as they scan passengers at airports, patrol the seas and respond to natural disasters.
This brings us back to the basic question: Why didn’t they just stay until they figured it out?
As a reporter, I have covered dozens of shutdowns, partial shutdowns, near shutdowns, flirtations with shutdowns. That’s to say nothing of various permutations of interim spending bills – long and short – known as Continuing Resolutions or CRs. Those bills keep the funding flowing at the old spending level – until lawmakers all agree on something new. Sometimes one CR begets another CR. And even another one after that until everything’s resolved. The exercise can go on for months.
HOW ICE WENT FROM POST-9/11 COUNTERTERROR AGENCY TO CENTER OF THE IMMIGRATION FIGHT
Sen. Katie Britt vented frustration on the Senate floor after her stopgap bill was blocked. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
But as it pertains to DHS, lawmakers weren’t going to solve the issues surrounding ICE right away. So both the House and Senate got out of Dodge last Thursday as the deadline loomed. Lawmakers were everywhere from the Middle East to Munich when the bell tolled midnight Saturday and DHS lumbered into a slow-speed funding crash.
Failure to fund the Department of Homeland Security may seem unreasonable from a policy standpoint – regardless of what you think of ICE. But it’s not unreasonable if you understand the politics and Congressional procedure to fund ICE.
Let’s say they were on the precipice of an agreement to fund DHS. That may involve some last-minute trading of paper between Senate and House leaders. Maybe a call or two from the President to reluctant Republicans. If lawmakers believed a deal was within range, it’s doubtful that leaders would have cut Members loose. They would have stayed if there was a viable path to nail something down last Friday, have the Senate expedite the process and vote on either Saturday or Sunday (albeit after the deadline) and then have the House vote on Monday. That’s all under the premise of a deal being close.
They were nowhere near that stage when lawmakers called it last Thursday. Democrats didn’t send over their offer for days after a brief shutdown of 78 percent of the government more than two weeks ago. Democrats then criticized Republicans and the White House for slowly volleying a counteroffer. Democrats then rejected the GOP plan – only sending back another plan late Monday.
Getting a deal which can pass both the House and Senate – and overcome a Senate filibuster – takes time. And there simply wasn’t a deal to be had yet.
This is where things get really interesting. With no agreement in sight, you simply don’t anchor lawmakers in Washington with nothing to do. There’s nothing to vote on. There are no committee meetings scheduled. All tethering lawmakers to DC does is stir up trouble.
There’s a line in the song «Trouble» in The Music Man by Meredith Willson: «The idle brain is the devil’s playground.» Who knows what kinds of mischief you would have, just making very cranky lawmakers hang around Washington for days – without anything to vote on. Keeping everyone here does not contribute to securing a deal. Yes, all 532 House and Senate Members (there are two House vacancies) must eventually be dialed-in to vote on a bill to fund DHS. But we aren’t there yet. A handful of Members in the House, Senate and people at the White House will be the ones to negotiate an agreement. Rank-and-file Members marooned in Washington with nothing to do but post outrageous things on social media and appear on cable TV is counterproductive.
Now, let’s look at the other scenario of being close to an agreement. House and Senate leaders may believe they are still a little short of votes. But if something is viable, leaders know they can nail down the votes with some arm-twisting, legislative and ego massaging and a few forceful phone calls. Yes, that process may require elbow grease. But in that instance, keeping everyone in Washington for a few extra days and blowing up a long-awaited Congressional recess actually helps the process.
DHS SHUTDOWN LEAVES LOCAL EMERGENCY RESPONDERS ON THEIR OWN AMID EXTREME WEATHER, EXPERT WARNS
TSA officers, Coast Guard members and FEMA staff are working without pay as the DHS funding lapse drags on. (Photo by Heather Diehl/Getty Images)
Why?
Think of the Stockholm Syndrome. You demand that everyone stay in Washington for an extra day or two and the «hostages» will start to come around to the viewpoints of their captors. Yes, everyone is frustrated and mad. But they feel the bill is something they can support and finally end this triumvirate of government shutdowns. In this case, the fustigation builds – but just a little. Everyone is happy to vote yes and rush off of Capitol Hill.
If they were close to nailing down an agreement on DHS funding, then Congressional leaders would have deployed a version of the Stockholm Syndrome to wrap up everything.
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But with no deal, leaders were more afraid of the mayhem they may trigger by keeping everyone in Washington. The devil would romp freely through the playground of idle brains.
So how will you know when there’s a deal?
When everyone’s present and accounted for.
government shutdown,budget senate,democrats senate,homeland security
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