# If a SCOTUS Justice were charged with a crime. . . **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 28, 2018, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075 "2018-09-28T00:44:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2018, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075/21 "2018-09-28T20:51:23Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > True, and a very serious consideration. But it is also a core tenet of many treatment approaches that cleaning up the wreckage of the past, and practicing rigorous honesty in the present, are key to maintaining sobriety. I’m interested to see how Mr. Judge will reconcile the various pressures on him right now. > > If he remembers the assault, then her testimony can leave him with no question that he owes her amends for his past misdeeds. He also well knows the owes the citizens of the US honesty regarding his friend’s past behavior. As Kavanaugh doubles down and begins to insist that he was an innocent lamb who remained a virgin well into adulthood, Judge’s conscience must be writhing. I’m sure he’s under enormous pressure from his old friends to keep silent. > > If he’s serious about his sobriety, he’ll come forward. Is there some reason you think he wasn’t “practicing rigorous honesty” when he said “I never saw Brett act in the manner Dr. Ford describes”? ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2018, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075/22 "2018-09-28T21:07:57Z")
Judge, like Kavanaugh, was doubtless drunk at the time and doesn’t recall much of it. But he could still testify over the culture of (underage) drinking at the time. Too bad the statute of limitations actually applies in this case. One reason I think that Ford was honest is that if she were making it up, she certainly would have charged him with actual penetration. ---
**Author:** ![skyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/54ee81/32.png) [@skyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skyr)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2018, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075/23 "2018-09-30T20:53:07Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > I have the impression that Mr. Judge is unwilling to lie. Why else would he be running so hard?I think if he got on the stand Judge Kavanaugh would not only be dropped from consideration for SCOTUS, but he’d be looking for a new line of work. Alternate possibility: Mark Judge doesn’t know anything more than what he has already said about it, since it never actually happened, and he sees no reason to get any further involved in the shit show. Imagine that I accused you of witnessing someone grope me 20 years ago. Imagine that you don’t remember it happening, because to your knowledge it never happened. If my accusation became a national media sensation, what do you think would be your reaction? I really don’t think you’d be all, “Hell yes, sign me up for hours of deposition about this and scrutiny from tabloid media!”. If you could, you would probably prefer to just issue a statement that you don’t know what I am talking about and have nothing more to say about it. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075/24 "2018-10-01T02:17:25Z")
> [@Iggy](#): > > Mr Judge reportedly has struggled with addiction issues. “Reported that he has” or reported that people speculate that he has? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075/25 "2018-10-01T02:23:10Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > “Reported that he has” or reported that people speculate that he has? NM. I read “Judge Kavanaugh”, not “Judge”. You are correct. He wrote a book about it. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075/26 "2018-10-01T04:27:26Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > I have the impression that Mr. Judge is unwilling to lie. Why else would he be running so hard?I think if he got on the stand Judge Kavanaugh would not only be dropped from consideration for SCOTUS, but he’d be looking for a new line of work. Nice conspiracy theory. Too bad for your side that it almost certainly isn’t true. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2018, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075/27 "2018-10-01T19:50:57Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > Nice conspiracy theory. Too bad for your side that it almost certainly isn’t true. > [@Flyer](#): > > Nice conspiracy theory. Too bad for your side that it almost certainly isn’t true. I’m sorry, exactly how does the quoted language describe a conspiracy? ---
**Author:** ![LTU2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/22d042/32.png) [@LTU2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LTU2)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2018, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075/28 "2018-12-03T05:40:49Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I’m no law-talkin’-guy, but the Constitution doesn’t privilege justices from arrest like it does for members of Congress, and a quick Google shows that judicial immunity only seems to apply to _civil_ matters. Right, the Congressional privilege in the Constitution only applies to arrest on the “Civil Process”, basically an arrest in lieu of a Summons or if someone did not appear in Court to answer the Complaint, it does not apply to ANY criminal act. Back when it as drawn up in 1787, such Civil Process arrests were common. My state has such law, it even forbids arrest of a person going to or coming from a worship service. President U.S. Grant was arrested by a DC officer for speeding through town after being warned to not do it, but continued. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-scotus-justice-were-charged-with-a-crime/822075.md?page=1)