Judge Esther Sala’s son was fatally shot by an attacker at the family home.
Sala’s husband is also reportedly in critical condition. The only reason she was spared from the targeted and brutal attack was because she was in the basement at the time.
While this vicious attack would have been shocking news by itself, it drew even more attention than usual because Salas is involved in one of the cases regarding Jeffery Epstein.
Media reports say that it was Salas’ husband that answered the door when the gunman rang the bell, after which he was shot multiple times. When their son came to the door after hearing the gunshots, he was also shot. The gunman then immediately fled from the scene.
Considering the seriousness of the case, various local and federal law enforcement agencies are working in tandem to track down the gunman and the motive for the crime. While some suspect that it is a case of a burglary that went wrong, agencies emphasized all hypotheses are still valid.
Initial reports said that the attacker was in FedEx uniform, disguising himself as a delivery driver. The company has announced that it will fully cooperate with all related agencies to find the suspect. As of now, it is unclear if the gunman was an actual employee of FedEx or not.
Salas is a judge for the US District Court of New Jersey, which is also where the attack took place. When she was appointed to her position 9 years ago, she was the first Latina to serve in the federal courts of New Jersey.
She has presided over some high-profile cases, including the recent case regarding Jeffrey Epstein. The court is looking into whether Deutsche Bank took the appropriate precautions to monitor and prevent illegal money laundering by customers like Epstein.
Daniel Anderl, the only child between Judge Salas and Mark Anderl, was studying law just like his parents. Mark is a respected criminal defense lawyer. He is said to be in a critical yet steady state as of now.
We send the greatest condolences to those who knew Daniel. Join us sending your thoughts to the family, along with wishing Mark a speedy recovery in the comments below.
Replaced!