Retired federal judges defend Ketanji Brown Jackson's record on child porn cases as 'entirely consistent'

A group of retired federal judges -- including two Republican appointees -- told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday night that Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's record on child pornography sentencing is "entirely consistent" with the records of other judges across the country, rejecting criticism from Missouri GOP Sen. Josh Hawley and others.

The letter, first obtained by CNN and sent to the committee after the first day of hearings, rejects allegations that Hawley first tweeted out last week claiming that Jackson's record includes a "pattern of letting child porn offenders off the hook for their appalling crimes." It aligns with a CNN review of the material in question that showed Jackson mostly followed the common judicial sentencing practices in the specific category of cases.

"Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's record in individual cases is entirely consistent with the nationwide patterns described by the U.S. Sentencing Commission, and what the DOJ prosecutors or U.S. court probation departments have recommended," reads the letter, addressed to Chairman Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, and ranking member Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, and penned by retired Judge Nancy Gertner of the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts.