The Justice Department has stepped up its criminal investigation into the 2022 leak of the Supreme Court’s draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, issuing grand jury subpoenas and seeking information from people who worked at the court when the document was disclosed.
The investigation, which has been underway since last year, has accelerated in recent weeks under U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro. Pirro has assigned prosecutor Carlton Davis to the case as investigators seek to identify who provided the draft opinion, written by Justice Samuel Alito, to Politico in May 2022, nearly two months before the court officially released its decision.
The leak prompted Chief Justice John Roberts to order an internal investigation, which included interviews with 97 court personnel, including law clerks and staff members. The court concluded its inquiry in January 2023 without identifying the source of the disclosure.
