Galloway, N.J. — The Stockton University Foundation received a $100,000 gift May 19 from the Daniel Anderl Judicial Protection Project to create an endowed scholarship for undergraduate students interested in studying privacy law, cybersecurity and criminal justice.

The Daniel Anderl Judicial Protection Project’s mission is to further the safety, security and privacy of members of the judicial community and their families. Three members of the project’s board attended a check presentation on campus with members of the Stockton community.

“Our organization understands that education is the best way to try and minimize the effects of threats upon judges and the way people view the judicial system,” said Jose Linares, a member of the project’s board and a former Chief U.S. District Judge for New Jersey. “We have to support education so that the voices of the reasonable drown out the voices of the unreasonable.”

The project honors the memory of Daniel Anderl, the son of U.S. District Court Judge Esther Salas and defense attorney Mark Anderl. Daniel was shot and killed in July 2020 just six days after his 20th birthday by an assailant targeting Judge Salas at their home. Mark Anderl was also seriously wounded in the shooting. The gunman, a former litigant and lawyer, found the judge’s personal information on the internet and came to the family’s door posing as a deliveryman.

After her son’s death, Judge Salas successfully lobbied the New Jersey Legislature and Congress to pass laws that prohibit the public disclosure of personal information of judges, prosecutors and law enforcement agents.

“Evil is going to exist no matter what we do, and there’s going to be people out there who are bad people who are going to do these kinds of things no matter what,” said Linares, who is also a friend of the Salas family. “When you fuel the anti-judicial rhetoric that’s out there and the criticism of judges, it undermines our Constitution and puts all judges at risk. I do believe that our entire democracy is at stake if the confidence and belief in the judicial system and the rule of law continues to be eroded.”

The project previously established an undergraduate scholarship at Rutgers University-Newark and at Seton Hall University’s law school. Rachael Honig, a member of the project’s board, said the organization wants to continue to expand by providing more scholarships all across New Jersey.

“We thought we were missing a big part of the state, so we were definitely looking for a school in the southern part of New Jersey that serves a student population that is in need of financial support,” Honig said. “So, Stockton was an obvious choice.”

University President Joe Bertolino thanked the project board members for the donation and mentioned how it will go a long way toward continuing to build a “community of opportunity” for Stockton students.

“My hope is that we can educate our students on the real meaning of justice and how they can be engaged citizens and participate in the work of democracy,” he said. “My hope is that we are educating future lawyers, future judges and future law enforcement personnel.”

Kevin O’Toole, the chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, is also a member of the project’s board. In a statement, he emphasized the importance of the project’s educational work.

“This new Daniel Anderl Scholarship at Stockton University will help support students who are pursuing careers in law enforcement and legal advocacy,” said the former New Jersey senator. “We must ensure that judges and their families remain safe. We owe that to all of them, and particularly, to Judge Esther Salas and to the memory of her son, Daniel.”

Dan Nugent, the executive director of the Stockton University Foundation, said the awarding of the first scholarship will take place this week, and added that he was grateful the foundation is entrusted with the opportunity to share Daniel’s story with future Stockton students.

“With the establishment of this scholarship, we are proud to help carry forward a legacy rooted in justice and service,” he said. “This scholarship will support students who are preparing for careers in fields critical to protecting not only people, but principles in a rapidly changing world.”

Stockton offers more than 160 areas of study, including degrees in Criminal Justice, Computer Information Systems, Political Science and other fields related to privacy law, cybersecurity and criminal justice.

-- Story by Mark Melhorn, photo by Lizzie Nealis