Federal judge honored for turning grief over son’s murder into action at Red Mass

Wracked with unbearable grief, U.S. District Judge Esther Salas frantically phoned her pastor. She screamed words that still make the priest tremble: “My son was murdered!”

Salas made the call from the hospital on her darkest day: July 19, 2020. Her only child, Daniel Anderl, 20, sacrificed his life to save her and her husband, taking a bullet to the chest from a shooter who came to the door of their North Brunswick home. Salas’ husband, Mark Anderl, a criminal defense attorney, survived his serious gunshot wounds.

What followed was an arduous spiritual journey that brought Salas healing and closer to God, Jesus, the Blessed Mother, and the Church. It started weeks after Daniel’s murder when she received God’s grace to forgive the perpetrator, a disgruntled attorney, who died by suicide.

“Forgiveness clears the barriers to God. He is always there for his children [with] unconditional love,” said Salas, a parishioner of St. Augustine of Canterbury Parish in the Kendall Park neighborhood of South Brunswick in the Metuchen Diocese. She was the shooter’s intended target. “Now, I feel an overwhelming sense of peace and acceptance. I transferred my pain into something beautiful. We’ll never get over Daniel’s death. But we choose to accept life for what life is, not for what we want it to be.”

Salas cried when speaking on Oct. 1 at the eighth Red Mass for Lawyers at St. Paul Inside the Walls in Madison. There, she was presented with the Advocati Christi Award — a portrait of St. Thomas More, patron of lawyers — for her commitment to the legal profession and to the profession of her faith.

Salas and her husband turned their pain into action by pushing for laws that prohibit the disclosure of certain personal information of judges, prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and their family members. In the months after Daniel’s murder, legislation with those provisions was passed into law on the state and federal levels — both named after her son.

Presenting the award to Salas was Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, celebrant and homilist of the Mass, which was concelebrated with several priests in St. Paul’s chapel.

“After the tragic loss of your son, Daniel, you, with Mark, have preached the Gospel by the way you live your lives. You have been instruments of peace. We are happy to honor you today,” Bishop Sweeney said to Salas in his homily.

Sponsoring the Mass was Advocati Christi, a fellowship of Catholic lawyers and judges who are committed to their profession and their faith and seek to mentor other legal professionals.

Father Robert Lynam, St. Augustine’s pastor, introduced Salas at the Red Mass. He took her call that tragic day. The priest said Mark was the first to forgive the shooter while still fighting for his life in the hospital.

“As a Cuban, Esther took longer to forgive — a gift from God,” Father Lynam said. “Even though you can’t mention God or faith in court, Esther’s faith permeates her courtroom with justice, love, and forgiveness. Today, we celebrate the gift of her Catholic faith.”