- Supreme Court clerks have been asked to turn over their private phone records, CNN reported.
- This comes as the court investigates the leak of a draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade.
- Some clerks are alarmed by the investigation and considering hiring outside counsel.
Supreme Court officials are reportedly seeking to require law clerks to turn over their private phone records as part of the court's escalating investigation into the highly unusual leak of a draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade.
CNN reported that some clerks were alarmed by the requests, which include signing affidavits, and considering hiring outside counsel. The exact nature of the cellphone searches is unclear, CNN's Joan Biskupic reported. Chief Justice John Roberts, who confirmed the authenticity of the draft majority opinion that would gut federal abortion rights, has met with the court's clerks, CNN added.
Roberts slammed the leak as a "betrayal" and ordered the Supreme Court marshal to investigate. Some Republican lawmakers called for the FBI to be involved, though it is unclear if any criminal laws were broken.
A former clerk previously told Insider that the May 2 leak of a full draft opinion trumped any previous breach of the court's secrecy.
"The court can't operate if that happens," the former clerk said. "This is a major, major leak. It's hard to imagine a bigger leak."
There's no guarantee that the source of the leak is a clerk. Politico published Justice Samuel Alito's draft opinion and described the source as a "person familiar with the court's proceedings." The high court is examining abortion rights once again as it reviews a Mississippi law that effectively bans most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, which is about two months before fetuses are generally considered viable.
Supreme Court justices are limited in the number of clerks they can hire each term, and the prestigious positions are often filled by top graduates of the nation's highest-ranking law schools. Six current justices were Supreme Court clerks themselves. Other clerks — Republican Sens. Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, and Josh Hawley, as well as the White House chief of staff, Ron Klain — have gone on to have illustrious political careers.
A representative for the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The court is expected to hand down its ruling on Mississippi's law in the summer. Biskupic has covered the court for decades and has written biographies on multiple justices, including Roberts and Sonia Sotomayor.