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Judiciary

Seeing double standard, 5th Circuit judge resigns from judicial group over threats statement

By Debra Cassens Weiss

March 11, 2025, 3:32 pm CDT

A federal appeals judge has said he has resigned from the Federal Judges Association because it issued a statement against recent judicial threats but apparently said nothing in defense of conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices.

Judge James C. Ho of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at New Orleans announced his resignation at an event by the Federalist Society, a conservative group, on Saturday, report Bloomberg Law, Reuters and Law.com.

The March 5 statement by the Federal Judges Association said judges must be permitted to do their jobs without fear of violence or intimidation.

The Federal Judges Association statement said the group appreciates Chief Justice John Roberts and others who have “commented recently on the rise in criticism, threats and violence aimed at members of the judiciary. Irresponsible rhetoric shrouded in disinformation undermines the public’s confidence that our justice system can fulfill its constitutional duties.”

The group made the statement amid impeachment threats and criticism regarding judges who have ruled against the Trump administration.

“Did we see these statements in 2024 or 2023 or 2022? From what I can tell, no,” Ho said. “You can’t say that you’re in favor of judicial independence only when it comes to decisions that you like. That’s not protecting the judiciary. That’s politicizing the judiciary.”

Ho mentioned the 2022 arrest of a man armed with a gun and zip ties near the home of Justice Brett Kavanaugh and criticism of Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Samuel Alito.

Ho is an appointee of President Donald Trump during his first term. He previously announced that he is boycotting the hiring of clerks from law schools that he thinks have mishandled student protests or stifled conservative views.

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Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr., the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, issued the following statement regarding the President’s veto of S. 4199, the Judicial Understaffing Delays Getting Emergencies Solved (JUDGES) Act:

“The President’s veto of the JUDGES Act is extremely disappointing. Providing additional judgeships is essential to improving access to the courts and necessary for the efficient and effective administration of justice, as the Judiciary stated in a recent letter to the President (PDF) addressing issues raised by the Administration in objection to the bill. The judgeship legislation presented to the President reflects decades of work by the federal Judiciary and is very similar to legislation introduced in the last Congress. It is not a bill that was hastily put together. Rather it is the product of careful and detailed analysis which considers primarily the weighted caseload per active judge in each judicial district, while also factoring in the contribution of senior judges, magistrate judges and visiting judges. 

“This veto is a deviation from the long historical pattern of approving judgeship bills that awarded new judgeships to sitting Presidents. The President’s veto is contrary to the actions of Senator Biden who helped pass many of those bills. 

“It is regrettable that the Administration failed to support the federal Judiciary, and rejected this bipartisan, bicameral and interbranch agreement (PDF). The President’s veto will contribute to the pattern of growing caseloads and increasing backlogs that hurt litigants and weakens public confidence in our courts. We appreciate the support of Congress and look forward to working with them to enact essential judgeship legislation.”