The Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation into the 2022 leak of the Supreme Court draft opinion that ultimately overturned Roe v. Wade, reviving scrutiny of one of the most consequential breaches of confidentiality in the court’s history. Federal prosecutors have recently issued grand jury subpoenas and sought information from people who worked at the Supreme Court when the draft decision in Dobbs v.
Jackson Women’s Health Organization was disclosed to Politico, according to The New York Times. The final ruling, released roughly two months after the leak, eliminated the federal constitutional right to abortion. The Supreme Court conducted its own investigation after the disclosure but announced in January 2023 that investigators could not determine who provided the draft.
The criminal inquiry now raises fresh questions about what offense prosecutors believe may have occurred, what evidence they are pursuing and how deeply the executive branch can investigate the traditionally secretive operations of a separate branch of government. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro is overseeing the investigation. Its renewed momentum comes as some potentially applicable federal statutes approach their five-year limitations periods and as President Donald Trump and other conservatives have continued calling for the leaker to be identified.
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