Marshal “spoke” to Supreme Court justices, excluded them from signing affidavits as part of a leak investigation

The U.S. Supreme Court marshal “spoke” with the court’s justices in the investigation into the leak of the Dobbs draft decision that ultimately struck down the constitutional right to abortion, but unlike the dozens of other staffers, they were not asked to sign affidavits, according to a statement issued late Friday afternoon by the court.

The terse statement offered few additional details, especially after the marshal’s 20-page report left far more questions than answers. The report states that the investigation was unable to identify the funder.

“During the course of the investigation, I spoke with each of the justices, several on several occasions,” says U.S. Supreme Court Marshal Gail Curley. “The judges actively cooperated in this iterative process, asking questions and answering mine. I followed every credible lead, none of which involved the judges or their wives. On that basis, I didn’t think it was necessary to ask the judges to sign affidavits.

Their statement does not say that the judges were formally questioned, nor does it say whether Marshal Curley spoke or questioned their wives.

The treatment of the judges appeared to be either much less extensive or not fully disclosed, a day after the court issued the marshal’s report. The report did not even mention that the judges had been interviewed. Several legal experts have concluded, based on the report’s roundabout language, that neither the judges nor their spouses were interviewed.

The statement also does not indicate that the judges’ cell phones or other electronic devices were examined.