Supreme Court officials are likely to order law clerks to turn over their cell phones and provide call records as part of their investigation into the leak of a draft opinion set to overturn Roe v. Wade, CNN reported Tuesday.
Officials have zeroed in on the clerks as the likely source of the leak, according to the report, with Chief Justice John Roberts meeting with them as a group shortly after Politico published a draft majority opinion showing the Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. Each justice hires four clerks per term, and many court-watchers have speculated that a clerk hired by one of the three liberal justices is the source of the leak. (RELATED: Liberals Cheer On SCOTUS Leaker Who Shattered Court Norms As ‘Hero’)
The clerks will also be asked to sign affidavits related to the leak, according to anonymous sources cited by CNN. As a result, some are reportedly considering hiring lawyers to help them navigate the investigation. Marshal of the Supreme Court Gail Curley, a retired Army colonel, is overseeing the probe. She was previously head of the National Security Law Division in the Office of The Judge Advocate General.
Roberts confirmed the authenticity of the draft document shortly after it was published, and Politico later reported that the five justices in the majority are still prepared to overturn Roe v. Wade.
An on-looker records on their phone as pro-choice demonstrators march to the house of US Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito in Alexandria, Virginia, on May 9, 2022. – The US Senate will vote on May 11 on a national abortion rights bill — a process likely doomed to fail — after a leaked draft decision signalled the Supreme Court’s readiness to overturn the 1973 Roe v Wade decision. (Photo by STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)
After the leak, a left-wing organization published the home addresses of the six Republican-appointed justices, and pro-abortion protesters appeared outside their homes shortly after. Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin requested that Fairfax County police increase their protection of the homes of the three justices who live in the county. Youngkin and Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan urged the Department of Justice to enforce a law prohibiting the intimidation of federal judges and justices.
The leak also spurred Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to hold a second vote on the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would legalize abortion up to the moment of birth and eliminate conscience protections for healthcare providers. Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin joined all 50 Republicans in voting to sink the legislation.