Chief Justice John Roberts confirms authenticity of leaked draft opinion, orders investigation
Updated: 10:56 AM CDT May 3, 2022
The state has placed a bounty, a $10,000 bounty on our heads. It's like a shot in the back to women. It's my goal to ultimately overturn roe v wade because I think the court got it wrong. Then all eyes are on the Supreme Court after justices refused to block the strictest texas abortion ban in august and now prepared to hear oral arguments in a Mississippi case that could overturn roe V wade. In 1973. Roe V wade made abortion a constitutional right after a texas woman norma jane roe McCorvey challenged the state's ban on the procedure. Despite that precedent, 48 years later, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the country's strictest ban on abortion into law. The life of every unborn child. We have, the heartbeat will be saved from the ravages of abortion. It went into effect in september leaving many women over six weeks pregnant, including those who were victims of rape abuse or incest. With few options, Although women receiving an abortion cannot be sued under the law. Anyone who helps her can be. The state has placed a bounty of $10,000 bounty on our heads, but they've now allowed the everyday citizens specifically the very people who stand on the sidewalk and harassed myself and my staff and my providers most times by name on a day to day basis, now have the authority and have been basically deputized to bring lawsuits against us the most pernicious thing about the texas law. It sort of creates a vigilante system and it just seems un american. You don't even have to be a Texas resident to file the suit or claim the $10,000 bounty under the law. You can sue the doctor, the medical staff at the clinic and anyone who drives a woman to their appointment. In response. Uber and Lyft have pledged to pay the legal fees of anyone sued under the texas abortion law, although texas's decision is grabbing everyone's attention nationwide. Republicans have pushed abortion restrictions for years. Now. The Mississippi case will go before the Supreme Court challenging roe v wade In a 5- four decision. The Supreme Court declined to block the Texas Bam. In justice Sonia Sotomayor's dissenting opinion. She called texas Senate Bill eight a flagrantly unconstitutional law engineered to prohibit women from exercising their constitutional rights and evade judicial scrutiny. Abortion clinics were left with no choice but to turn people away or send them across state lines, It will significantly impair women's access to the healthcare they need, particularly for communities of color and individuals with low incomes. In response, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the state of texas. This leaves women in texas unable to exercise their constitutional rights and unable to obtain judicial review. At the very moment, they need it already a texas doctor took matters into his own hands providing an abortion that is now illegal in an op ed published in the Washington post. The doctor wrote, I believe abortion is an essential part of healthcare. I've spent the past 50 years treating and helping patients. I can't just sit back and watch us return to 1972 just days after going public to individuals brought lawsuits against the doctor. In a late night decision, a month after the law went into effect, a federal judge issued an order to block it. Governor Abbott immediately appealed the following morning in May, before Abbott even signed that law. Roe V wade was in jeopardy of being overturned. The Supreme Court agreed to hear oral arguments from Mississippi's case, Dobbs v. Jackson, Women's health organizations. The law at the heart of the case, attempts to ban abortion after 15 weeks and has been working its way up the legal system since 2018 is my goal to ultimately overturn Roe v wade because I think the court got it wrong. Then the fifth Circuit temporarily blocked that law saying that Roe V wade protects a woman's right to an abortion. The state of Mississippi appealed that decision, ultimately asking the Supreme Court to weigh in which they will in december. His justices decided to take up our case. So I feel like they're going to want to do something. They're going to address the viability, which is the question we've asked them after all of this. Now, they're saying that these same women should not have the right to make this decision themselves. It doesn't make sense. It's it's like it's unconstitutional. It's it's it's just it's like a shot In the back to women. By the end of 2022, the nine justices will announce their decision. If the court agrees with Mississippi's argument, it would reverse a right given to women nearly 50 years ago.
Chief Justice John Roberts confirms authenticity of leaked draft opinion, orders investigation
Updated: 10:56 AM CDT May 3, 2022
Chief Justice John Roberts says the Supreme Court will investigate the release of a draft opinion that would strike down Roe v. Wade and called the episode "a singular and egregious breach" of trust."This was a singular and egregious breach of that trust that is an affront to the Court and the community of public servants who work here. I have directed the Marshal of the Court to launch an investigation into the source of the leak," Roberts said in a statement Tuesday."To the extent this betrayal of the confidences of the Court was intended to undermine the integrity of our operations, it will not succeed," Roberts said. "The work of the Court will not be affected in any way. We at the Court are blessed to have a workforce -- permanent employees and law clerks alike -- intensely loyal to the institution and dedicated to the rule of law. Court employees have an exemplary and important tradition of respecting the confidentiality of the judicial process and upholding the trust of the Court."The court's public affairs office confirmed the document published by Politico is "authentic," but stressed that "it does not represent a decision by the Court or the final position of any member on the issues in the case."According to the draft authored by Justice Samuel Alito, the court would overturn Roe v. Wade's holding of a federal constitutional right to an abortion.It appears that five justices would be voting to overturn Roe. Roberts did not want to completely overturn Roe v. Wade, meaning he would have dissented from part of Alito's draft opinion, sources tell CNN, likely with the court's three liberals.That would mean that the five conservative justices that would make up the majority overturning Roe are Alito and Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.The court did not comment on the potential breakdown of how justices would vote. Roberts did not respond to questions from CNN at his house Tuesday morning.This story is breaking and will be updated.
WASHINGTON — Chief Justice John Roberts says the Supreme Court will investigate the release of a draft opinion that would strike down Roe v. Wade and called the episode "a singular and egregious breach" of trust.
"This was a singular and egregious breach of that trust that is an affront to the Court and the community of public servants who work here. I have directed the Marshal of the Court to launch an investigation into the source of the leak," Roberts said in a statement Tuesday.
"To the extent this betrayal of the confidences of the Court was intended to undermine the integrity of our operations, it will not succeed," Roberts said. "The work of the Court will not be affected in any way. We at the Court are blessed to have a workforce -- permanent employees and law clerks alike -- intensely loyal to the institution and dedicated to the rule of law. Court employees have an exemplary and important tradition of respecting the confidentiality of the judicial process and upholding the trust of the Court."
The court's public affairs office confirmed the document published by Politico is "authentic," but stressed that "it does not represent a decision by the Court or the final position of any member on the issues in the case."
According to the draft authored by Justice Samuel Alito, the court would overturn Roe v. Wade's holding of a federal constitutional right to an abortion.
It appears that five justices would be voting to overturn Roe. did not want to completely overturn Roe v. Wade, meaning he would have dissented from part of Alito's draft opinion, sources tell CNN, likely with the court's three liberals.
That would mean that the five conservative justices that would make up the majority overturning Roe are Alito and Justices , Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.
The court did not comment on the potential breakdown of how justices would vote. Roberts did not respond to questions from CNN at his house Tuesday morning.
This story is breaking and will be updated.