WASHINGTON – An inverted American flag, a symbol associated with former President Donald Trump’s false claims of election fraud, was displayed outside Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s home in January 2021, The New York Times reported on Thursday.
A photo obtained and published by the newspaper shows the flag flying on Jan. 17, 2021, days after Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Dozens of protesters carried similar upside-down flags and shouted slogans such as “Stop the To steal.”
The report could raise concerns about Alito’s impartiality as the court considers two important cases related to the attack, including the charges the rioters face and whether Trump has immunity from prosecution on election interference charges.
This comes as another conservative justice, Clarence Thomas, ignored calls to recuse himself from cases related to the 2020 election because of his wife, Ginni Thomas’, support for Trump and public trust in the Supreme Court is at an all-time high. lowest in at least 50 years. Judicial experts said the flag clearly violates ethical rules established to avoid even the appearance of prejudice.
At the time the flag was flying, the court was still considering whether to take up the cases during the 2020 election. It ultimately dismissed them due to dissent from three conservative justices, including Alito, who was appointed by Republican President George W. Bush. He wrote that the court’s consideration of the cases would not impact the 2020 election but would “provide invaluable guidance for future elections.”
Alito, for his part, acknowledged the presence of the flag at his home in Alexandria, Virginia, but said it was placed there by his wife.
“I had no involvement in the raising of the flag,” Alito said in a statement emailed to the newspaper. “It was briefly put up by Ms. Alito in response to a neighbor’s use of objectionable and personally insulting language on yard signs.”
Martha-Ann Alito was in a dispute with another family in the neighborhood over an anti-Trump sign on their lawn, and neighbors also interpreted the flag as a political statement, the Times reported. It is unclear how long the flag was flying.
Judicial codes of ethics focus on the need for judges to be independent, avoiding political statements or opinions on issues they may be called upon to decide. The Supreme Court has long lacked its own code of ethics, but adopted one in November 2023 in the face of ongoing criticism over undisclosed travel and gifts from wealthy benefactors to some judges. The code lacks means of enforcement, however.
Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia, told the newspaper that flying the flag upside down is “the equivalent of putting a ‘Stop the Steal’ sign in your yard, which is a problem if you’re deciding issues. related to elections. cases.”
Even if it was placed by his wife or someone else who lives in the house, “he shouldn’t have it in the yard as a message to the world,” she said.
The Supreme Court has warned its own staff about public displays that indicate partisan leanings, the newspaper reported. The court did not respond to questions about whether these rules apply to judges.
The U.S. Flag Code states that the American flag should not be flown upside down “except as a sign of extreme distress in case of extreme danger to life or property.” It has been used as a symbol of protest by both the left and right on a range of issues over the decades. It took off as a symbol of Trump’s “Stop the Steal” campaign as he spread false claims that the election he lost to President Joe Biden had been stolen.
