Here at Snopes, we encounter a fair share of absurd claims and a recent one posted by Before It’s News really takes the cake, namely that U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett was placed under house arrest by the military and fitted with an ankle bracelet in April 2021.
The article, posted on May 19, 2021, claimed:
On April 15, U.S. Navy JAG and Army CID investigators visited Barrett’s D.C. home where she lives with her children and her husband, Jesse, most of whom were present when investigators told Barrett that the Insurrection Act of 1807, which Donald J. Trump invoked before leaving office, empowered them to detain or arrest citizens who stand accused of treason or present a threat to national security.
A source involved in Trump’s Deep State battle told Real Raw News that Barrett, evidently confused, welcomed investigators into her home under the impression that they were seeking her help in an official, Supreme Court Justice capacity. When told that she was the target of the military’s investigation, Barrett turned belligerent and said she did not acknowledge military authority over the citizenry. She accused investigators of misrepresenting themselves to gain access to her home, and demanded they leave unless they had an arrest warrant issued by a D.C. circuit judge.
There is no proof that Barrett was placed under house arrest. In fact on April 23, mere days after her supposed house arrest, she was with her fellow Supreme Court justices, and taking their official class photo.
Barrett and the other justices had reportedly been working apart on account of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the class photo indicated that they may have started working out of the court building, which had been closed to the public since 2020.
On April 19, 2021, reports emerged that Barrett had also signed a book deal, worth $2 million according to sources. The book is about how justices should not bring their personal feelings into their rulings.
These are not the actions of someone under house arrest.
The Supreme Court announced in May that it will hear an abortion-related case, the first one since Barrett was sworn in last October. Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization is a challenge to a Mississippi law that prohibits nearly all abortions after the 15th week of pregnancy. Barrett is vocally anti-abortion.
It's worth noting that Before It's News describes itself as "a community of individuals who report on what’s going on around them" and "anyone can contribute." Furthermore, the site encourages readers to support its reporting by buying "natural health products." These are not typical tactics of an esteemed journalistic organization.
Given that there is no proof that Barrett is under house arrest and fitted with an ankle bracelet and readily available evidence to the contrary, we rate this claim as “False.”