Nicholas John Roske pleaded guilty this past April to a charge of attempting to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

While the Trump Department of Justice (DOJ) sought a 30-year prison term for Roske, a Biden-appointed judge gave him a shocking sentence.  

Roske given just eight years and one month behind bars

According to the New York Post, U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman sentenced Roske on Friday to eight years and one month behind bars along with a lifetime of supervised release.

The Post noted how lawyers for Roske, who now identifies as transgender and uses the name "Sophie," had asked for eight years of incarceration and 25 years of supervised release.

They asserted in a filing that Roske had experienced "major depression" after graduating high school in 2014 and made at least one attempt at killing himself.

The legal team further maintained Roske's mental condition grew worse "when the Covid-19 pandemic made in-person visits" with a therapist impossible.

"The plan to kill [Kavanaugh], which included her purchasing burglary tools and firearm, was secondary to her months-long desire to kill herself," they wrote.

Prosecutors cite threat Roske posed to "the Constitutional judicial order"

However, prosecutors highlighted the severity of Roske's "actions and intent" in a sentencing memo which was submitted on September 26.

They noted how his plans "were extremely dangerous to the lives of multiple sitting judges, their family members, and the Constitutional judicial order."

Brett Kavanaugh’s would-be assassin gets just over 8 years in prison https://t.co/1OXktihD6F pic.twitter.com/vqCbpWJ1tQ

— New York Post (@nypost) October 3, 2025

"The sentence imposed in this case must send the powerful message, both to the defendant and to others who contemplate committing assassination to obstruct judicial independence, that these ends never justify the means and that the consequences are not worth engaging in these acts," they added.

Judge asks if Roske will have access to transgender hormone treatment

In a letter written to the court, Roske apologized "for contributing to a trend of political violence in American politics. I can see now how destructive and misguided such acts are, and am ashamed to have not recognized these things sooner."

"I have been portrayed as a monster, and this tragic mistake that I made will follow me for the rest of my life," the failed assassin added.

The Post observed how for her part, Boardman expressed concern over whether Roske would be able to receive transgender hormone therapy while in prison.