Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas won’t face a law enforcement investigation over allegations of ethics violations, according to a federal agency responsible for judicial guidelines. This decision came in a letter sent on Tuesday to Rep. Hank Johnson, a Democrat from Georgia. The letter shut down a request to refer Thomas to the Department of Justice over controversies about gifts and other ethics concerns.
For years, Justice Thomas has been criticized for accepting lavish gifts and failing to report them. Public reports since 2004 have identified him as the top recipient of gifts among Supreme Court justices. Things got worse when it was revealed that, for years, Thomas didn’t disclose these gifts. In 2011, he had to amend years’ worth of financial disclosure forms to include his wife’s income and unreported gifts.
Criticism has been widespread, with Democrats, ethics watchdogs, law professors, and commentators questioning Thomas’s actions. The controversy gained momentum again in April 2023 when a nonprofit media outlet revealed Thomas and his wife had taken numerous undisclosed trips around the world on a luxury yacht owned by Dallas billionaire and Republican donor Harlan Crow.
This revelation led Johnson and other lawmakers to push for action. Johnson sent three letters to the Judicial Conference, the federal body overseeing judicial ethics, in April, June, and December 2024. The December letter was co-signed by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island. They urged the Conference to take responsibility and clarify its stance on the matter. In July 2024, Whitehouse and Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon went straight to Attorney General Merrick Garland, asking him to investigate Thomas.
Despite these efforts, the Judicial Conference decided not to take action. On Thursday, they replied to Johnson and Whitehouse, explaining that Thomas had agreed to follow updated rules for reporting gifts and financial information. Judicial Conference Secretary Robert J. Conrad Jr. emphasized that new reporting standards had been introduced in 2023 and 2024, and Thomas had pledged to comply with them.
Conrad’s letter stated that the Judicial Conference doesn’t have authority over Supreme Court justices but noted that Thomas had amended his financial reports to address past issues. The letter also explained that the Conference has no legal power to refer Supreme Court justices for criminal investigation, a point Conrad said could raise constitutional concerns if Congress tried to grant such authority.
The situation appeared to reach a standstill. Conrad argued that since Whitehouse and Wyden had already asked the Department of Justice to investigate in July, the Judicial Conference’s role in the matter was now irrelevant.
For now, it seems Justice Thomas is off the hook, though the story highlights ongoing concerns about ethics and accountability at the nation’s highest court.
