So who's the leaker?

[mudwhistle]

 

[jknowgood]

I thought of that too. "What if this were a Democrat majority Supreme Court, and a conservative law clerk for a justice leaked an opinion for a radical change to the second ammendment written by a democrat justice", what would the left do?

My guess is, they'd be calling for congressional investigations, prison for the leaker, and the justice they clerked for to be unseated and disbarred.

I'm thinking if it was a Republican, they did it knowing the democrats would spend all their money fighting this. Instead of campaigning for the up coming election.

 

[ThisIsMe]

I'm sure the reflexive right wing loons will jump all over my first sentence only....

What damage does something like this do? It remains unclear what the big deal is. Like if the bailiff is instructed to collect he verdict from the jury foreperson, peaks at it, and hands it to the judge. Does that invalidate the verdict? Nope.

Anyway, what I think should happen to the leaker is, at minimum, disbarment if they are an attorney. If they work for the Court...they broke the rules. Beyond that, if they are not an officer of the court....I'm not sure what could be done on the legal side of the scale. Some on the right think Snowden is a national hero...what they leaked caused much more damage to the ship of state.

The first thing I think of is ethics. This was unethical at the very least, to leak a supreme court justices unpublished writings. This might have been something that was in the process of working its way through their system, and now it's been leaked, and therefore it's going to be hotly debated and could influence the supreme court decision.

Now, I'm sure you are going to say that's a good thing in this case. Do you really want law clerks doing things that can have adverse affects on the justices?

It also creates a trust issue. Now the justices are going to have to look over their shoulder on everything. Who's going to be the next person to leak one of our drafts?

It'd a bad thing when you have 1 unappointed law clerk that can upend the entire supreme court.

 

[Devils_Advocate]

Disbarment and if found a judge did it then their removal from the court no matter which political party…

If the judge had no knowledge then a possible censure against them but that might be a little harsh…

 

[ThisIsMe]

I'm thinking if it was a Republican, they did it knowing the democrats would spend all their money fighting this. Instead of campaigning for the up coming election.

But it would still be just as bad. Can't have law clerks causing trouble in the supreme court.

 

[toobfreak]

What should the punishment be for leaker?​

Twice as long as the longest person kept in prison from J6 plus a day, with their lips sewn shut so they can only feed through a straw.

 

[toobfreak]

The punishment should be about the sane as for any other traitor.

Yes, one of the largest fundamental flaws with our judicial system now is that NO CRIME is considered serious enough for corporal punishment. We literally have at least a dozen people walking around these days right now who effectively committed TREASON against the United States and never spent a day in jail, while other more mundane murderers sometimes often spend years and decades in prison living a pretty good life after the crime even if eventually executed!

 

[mudwhistle]

 

[candycorn]

The first thing I think of is ethics. This was unethical at the very least, to leak a supreme court justices unpublished writings. This might have been something that was in the process of working its way through their system, and now it's been leaked, and therefore it's going to be hotly debated and could influence the supreme court decision.

Now, I'm sure you are going to say that's a good thing in this case. Do you really want law clerks doing things that can have adverse affects on the justices?

It also creates a trust issue. Now the justices are going to have to look over their shoulder on everything. Who's going to be the next person to leak one of our drafts?

It'd a bad thing when you have 1 unappointed law clerk that can upend the entire supreme court.

If you break the rules, you deserve to be punished. Be it Ashli Babbit at the capitol, the American Sprinter Sha'carri Richardson, or this person who leaked the information. Are you sure it was a law clerk or someone who works for the court at all?

If I was going to say something in my defense of "what's the big deal"...I would say that if a clerk leaking a document that states anything can sway a justice to reconsider their position based on societal blowback...they likely aren't up for the job of being an associate or supreme court justice to start with.

That being said...if it came from inside the building...there is zero room for this and whatever punishment is available...I hope they are exposed to it.

 

[9thIDdoc]

The Supreme Court is all about the Constitution; not parties. Divulging state secrets is treason and always has been.

 

[Big Bend Texas]

I'm thinking if it was a Republican, they did it knowing the democrats would spend all their money fighting this. Instead of campaigning for the up coming election.

Doubtful and this is a hell of a motivator to turn out the democrat vote and for fundraising.

There's also a very good chance it was done hoping the protesters would threaten and intimidate the members of the court hoping to get them to change their votes, thus the decision.

If that can be shown to be what's behind it you have some very serious crimes involved.

 

[ThisIsMe]

If you break the rules, you deserve to be punished. Be it Ashli Babbit at the capitol, the American Sprinter Sha'carri Richardson, or this person who leaked the information. Are you sure it was a law clerk or someone who works for the court at all?

If I was going to say something in my defense of "what's the big deal"...I would say that if a clerk leaking a document that states anything can sway a justice to reconsider their position based on societal blowback...they likely aren't up for the job of being an associate or supreme court justice to start with.

That being said...if it came from inside the building...there is zero room for this and whatever punishment is available...I hope they are exposed to it.

It would have to be someone on the inside. Who else would have access to their interior unpublished drafts?

 

[Big Bend Texas]

The Supreme Court is all about the Constitution; not parties. Divulging state secrets is treason and always has been.

These are not, "State Secrets", nor in any way classified under US law.

 

[Big Bend Texas]

It would have to be someone on the inside. Who else would have access to their interior unpublished drafts?

Nobody. I seriously doubt these draft opinions are printed by the gov't printing house.

 

[Big Bend Texas]

If you break the rules, you deserve to be punished. Be it Ashli Babbit at the capitol, the American Sprinter Sha'carri Richardson, or this person who leaked the information. Are you sure it was a law clerk or someone who works for the court at all?

Nobody else has access.

 

[candycorn]

It would have to be someone on the inside. Who else would have access to their interior unpublished drafts?

Any number of people. Nobody lives/works in a bubble. But I think it was someone inside the building myself.

 

[Moonglow]

The culprit should have to endure endless post by the OP.

 

[Burgermeister]

Jail.

 

[Dekster]

It depends on what the charge is, of course, but IMO this unprecedented leak is so egregious it should result in disbarment for life. At a minimum.

Explainer: Is it illegal to leak a U.S. Supreme Court opinion?

The leak of a draft U.S. Supreme Court opinion striking down the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion has spurned intense national debate over the identity of the leaker and whether the person could face criminal or other sanctions.

www.reuters.com

What makes you sure it is a lawyer? Could be a janitor. Could be Clarence Thomas' wife.

 

[Lisa558]

What law did she break?

That’s to be determined. But violating the confidence of the Supreme Court, when one is a lawyer uphold to certain behavior, is certainly grounds for dismissal from the profession for life.