Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Suggested Reading: Justice Stevens

United States Supreme Court watchers are in a flutter over rumors that Justice John Paul Stevens will retire at the end of the Court's current Term in June.

The Justice will be 90 years old in April, and the rumors began with reports that he hired only one law clerk for next year (the allotment for a retired Justice) instead of four (the allotment for sitting Justices). As the rumors persisted, short lists of potential nominees to the Court have circulated, as well as speculation on what effect, if any, his retirement will have on voting patterns on the Court.

The New Yorker magazine dated March 22, 2010, which is out this week, has a fine profile of the Justice, "After Stevens," by Jeffrey Toobin. The Justice tells Toobin that he will decide in April whether to retire. As for the number of law clerks: he has received assurances from three of his current four clerks that they will stay on for another year if he does not retire.

Most notable for baseball fans is that Justice Stevens' was at the famous 1932 game in which Bath Ruth is said to have pointed to center field and then hit a home run there. The Justice reports that he saw Ruth point. Is more proof needed than the testimony of a United States Supreme Court Justice?

No comments:

Post a Comment