Supreme Court Justice Alito took a private jet trip on a billionaire's dime, didn't disclose it, & refused to recuse himself when the billionaire's hedge fund had business before the court.
“The idea ‘just trust us to do the right thing’ while remaining in total secrecy is unworkable,” said University of Virginia School of Law judicial ethics expert Amanda Frost.
“If you were good friends, what were you doing ruling on his case?” Charles Geyh, Indiana University law professor and expert on recusals, said toIf Alito were to charter a private jet on his own, it would have cost over $100,000 one way, the publication found. Alito went on to argue that personal hospitality, including “property or facilities” owned by an individual, do not need to be disclosed. He cited Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary’s and Black’s Law Dictionary’s definitions of “facilities” — not quite official Court documents — to argue that a private jet is a “facility.” He also said that he only took the jet because there was an empty seat on it, and that the cost to take a commercial flight would have been too much of a burden on U.S.
He then downplayed the undisclosed three-night stay in the Alaska lodge, owned then by major conservative legal donor Robin Arkley II, describing it as “modest” and “rustic.” The lodge, which has since been sold, charged more than $1,000 a day, according to— but the justice didn’t need to worry about the cost, as Arkley allowed Alito to stay for free.
Alito’s claim on the disclosure blatantly contradicts expert opinions. Seven experts on ethics law toldthat disclosure of private jet flights — similar to the one taken and not disclosed by Justice Clarence Thomas — are clearly required under the law, and that the lodge stay needed to be disclosed as well, though that rule may not have been made explicit until recently.
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