(NewsNation) — It’s been almost one year since the draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked, and now, Justice Samuel Alito says he thinks he knows who did it.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal’s opinion section, Alito said he has a “pretty good idea” who was responsible for unprecedented breach of court secrecy.
“I personally have a pretty good idea who is responsible, but that’s different from the level of proof that is needed to name somebody,” Alito said.
Alito suggested it was not one of the conservative justices.
“Look, this made us targets of assassination. Would I do that to myself? Would the five of us have done that to ourselves?” Alito asked the paper. “It’s quite implausible.”
The draft opinion was leaked to Politico, then published May 2 of last year, weeks before the Supreme Court shared its final opinion at the end of its term. It sparked nationwide protests and prompted an investigation.
In some ways, Jess Bravin, a Supreme Court correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, told NewsNation host Dan Abrams that Alito’s comments did not provide much more information than The Wall Street Journal has previously reported.
“So in some ways, Justice Alito is not saying anything in substance more. Except when he pinpoints his suspicion that it’s somebody on the left. Him saying that is more than was said in the investigative report,” Bravin said, later adding: “We certainly know that he’s very angry about the leak to this day.”
Bravin believes Alito may going a bit further than what he knows about the investigation that was opened by Chief Justice John Roberts and assigned to Supreme Court Marshal Col. Gail Curley.
“I mean, he may be saying what the justices were briefed on regarding the investigation that was not part of the public report. I think it’s fair to assume they were told in greater detail than we, the public, were told about what the investigators found,” Bravin said. “Or perhaps he simply looked at that same extrinsic evidence that was published on social media by conservative bloggers and what have you, and he believes it. That may be it, as well. He hasn’t explained it.”
Bravin said justices speaking about matters beyond their opinions is a big deal.
“What is really remarkable, I think, is that he’s talking about this at all,” Bravin added.
After hearing oral arguments in a typical Supreme Court case, justices usually go back to a conference room where they take an initial vote on an issue and one justice is appointed to write a draft opinion, experts say. The opinion is then given to justices and clerks. In the case of the draft opinion striking down Roe v. Wade, Alito authored that piece.
The person behind the leak has not been identified and names of potential suspects have not been released. The high court said in January they were unable to find the source of the leak.