An armed man was arrested on the night of Tuesday June 7 to Wednesday June 8 near the home of conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh of the United States Supreme Court, against whom he "made threats", announced the high court.

The Supreme Court has been at the heart of a political storm since the leak in early May of a draft judgment suggesting that it is ready to bury the right to abortion.

The man arrested at 1:50 a.m. (0550 GMT) in Chevy Chase, an affluent northern Washington suburb, has been taken into custody, according to a statement from court spokeswoman Patricia McCabe, who did not given no further details.

In his twenties, he assured the police that he wanted to kill the conservative magistrate, assures the daily Washington Post on the basis of an anonymous source.

According to the daily, the security forces had been informed of the danger he represented and arrested him before he reached the judge's house.

He was 'angry' over the abortion plan and a series of deadly shootings at a school in Texas or a supermarket frequented by African-Americans in New York state, according to the daily .

The Supreme Court is due to hand down two long-awaited rulings on abortion and the carrying of firearms by June 30.

Deeply overhauled by former Republican President Donald Trump, who brought in three out of nine magistrates including Judge Kavanaugh, it could send the United States back 50 years, when each state was free to authorize or prohibit abortions on its soil.

It could also assert that Americans have a right to carry a gun outside their homes and complicate efforts by states trying to limit their movement in public spaces.

Justice Kavanaugh, who was confirmed in 2018 after an acrimonious debate involving sexual assault charges dating back to his youth, embodies for many American progressives the face of the High Court's rightward shift.

With AFP

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