Reporter Brian Ross of ABC News’ Nightline breaks a must-read exclusive story about a new ethics scandal at the Supreme Court: Justice Scalia missed Chief Justice Roberts’ swearing-in ceremony because he was giving a series of lectures on constitutional interpretation in Colorado — and he even had the nerve to exercise during his trip!!! Here is the scoop:
At the historic swearing-in of John Roberts as the 17th chief justice of the United States last September, every member of the Supreme Court, except Antonin Scalia, was in attendance. ABC News has learned that Scalia instead was on the tennis court at one of the country’s top resorts, the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Bachelor Gulch, Colo., during a trip to a legal seminar sponsored by the Federalist Society.
Not only did Scalia’s absence appear to be a snub of the new chief justice, but according to some legal ethics experts, it also raised questions about the propriety of what critics call judicial junkets.
It remains unclear whether Justice Scalia will have to step down from the Supreme Court or face impeachment, as no Justice has ever missed a hearing as critical as a swearing-in ceremony before. Some scholars argue that having missed Roberts’ swearing-in ceremony, Scalia lacks the qualifications to vote on cases heard by the Roberts Court. A group of law professors are rumored to be circulating a letter demanding that in light of Scalia’s absence from the critical ceremony, Scalia’s vote should now be ignored, and the vote of Justice Ginsburg (who was present) should be counted twice. Developing….
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