Now that life has grown menacing for the U.S. Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade last month, the high court’s chief security officer wants officials in the states and counties where those justices live to do something about it.

The marshal of the Supreme Court, Gail Curley, has asked officials in Virginia, Maryland, and the counties outside Washington, D.C., where six Republican-appointed justices live to step up and enforce local laws against picketing private residences.

The local officials, however, are pushing back, saying federal officials need to step up as well. All acknowledge that there is what the homeland security head, Alejandro Mayorkas, said over the weekend is a “heightened threat environment” for the justices since the Roe decision.

In a letter to Governors Youngkin and Hogan and county officials in Fairfax County, Virginia, and Montgomery County, Maryland, Ms. Curley said large groups of protestors have been gathering for weeks outside the justices’ homes chanting slogans, banging drums, and shouting into bullhorns.

Last week, for example, she said a group of 75 pro-abortion protestors picketed outside home of one justice in Montgomery County for 30 minutes before moving on to the home of another justice nearby and carrying on for another half an hour. The same crowd, which by then had swelled to more than 100 people, she said, returned to the first justice’s home for more of the same.

“This is exactly the kind of activity that the Maryland and Montgomery County laws prohibit,” Ms. Curley said. Protestors outside the Fairfax County home of one justice chanted obscenities and chanted “No privacy for us, no peace for you,” Ms. Curley said.

The protests began in May when a draft copy of the opinion overturning Roe first leaked, and have continued almost every weekend since. 

Maryland state law prohibits gatherings that “disrupt a person’s right to tranquility in the person’s home,” with violators facing up to 90 days in jail or a $100 fine or both. Montgomery County statutes prohibit protests in front of private residences, but groups are permitted to march in residential areas if they keep moving and do not stop at any particular residence.

Similar statutes are on the books in Virginia. Mr. Youngkin said in a statement over the weekend that he holds the safety of the justices as “an utmost priority” and has sent state troopers to enforce state laws, but more help is needed.

“The attorney general of the U.S. should do his job by enforcing the much more robust federal law,” Mr. Youngkin’s office said in a statement.

Maryland officials also pushed back against the marshal, saying both governors asked Attorney General Garland for help weeks ago but only heard back after an armed man was arrested last month outside Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s home and charged with attempted murder.

“Now a different federal official is writing to us with conflicting information,” Mr. Hogan’s communication director, Michael Ricci, said in a statement. “Had the Marshal taken the time to explore the matter, she would have learned that the constitutionality of the statute cited in her letter has been questioned by the Maryland Attorney General’s office.

“In light of the continued refusal of multiple entities to act, the governor has directed Maryland State Police to further review enforcement options that respect the First Amendment and Constitution,” Mr. Ricci added.

In an appearance on CBS’s “Face the Nation” Sunday, Mr. Mayorkas acknowledged that the justices are under increased threats since the court officially issued its Roe decision late last month.

“We are very mindful that the Supreme Court’s decision in reversing and overturning Roe v. Wade has really heightened the threat environment, and we have deployed resources to ensure the safety and security of the Supreme Court and the justices,” he said.