Leaked SCOTUS draft opinion suggests end to Roe v. Wade
Fox News legal analyst Gregg Jarrett and Prof. Alan Dershowitz join 'Hannity' with reaction.
The bombshell leak of an apparent draft of a decision that would overturn Roe v. Wade is likely the product of an ideologically leftist law clerk seeking either to halt a nixing of the abortion ban or to engender support for court-packing, Alan Dershowitz told Fox News.
The leaked draft, written in February, was reportedly crafted by George W. Bush-appointed Justice Sam Alito.
Dershowitz, a longtime Harvard Law professor, said he strongly opposes overturning the 1973 ruling, but emphasized this leak is an egregious violation of legal ethics.
SUPREME COURT DRAFT OPINION LEAKS
The Supreme Court (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
"I know Justice Alito, I know his writings. This sounds like a decision, a majority decision of the Supreme Court overruling Roe v. Wade," he said.
"And I have a theory and it's only a theory: I think this was leaked by a liberal law clerk who is trying to change the outcome of the case – either by putting pressure on some justices to change their mind or by getting Congress to pack the court even before June, which is very unlikely."
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Alito (Getty)
Thirdly, Dershowitz stated, the leak could be intended to pressure Congress to federally codify Roe v. Wade's abortion ban and prevent the future legality of states enacting their own abortion laws.
Moments thereafter, Sen. Bernie Sanders, a democratic socialist from Vermont, publicly demanded Roe indeed be passed into law or that the filibuster be killed in order to do so with 50 votes.
Dershowitz told "Hannity" that he believes the draft is indeed authentic and that the leaker definitely wants to change the outcome of the forthcoming opinion in the Dobbs v. Jackson, Mississippi, Women's Health Organization.
The case in question focuses on the Constitutionality of a 2018 law in the Magnolia State banning abortion after 15 weeks.
Later, Dershowitz added that the leaker could be considering themselves engaged in "civil disobedience", despite the possibility they will be disbarred, fired from the Supreme Court among other punishments.