Clarence Thomas Breaks Supreme Court Silence

“Ms. Eisenstein, one question.” With that statement this week, Justice Clarence Thomas threw the Supreme Court into a frenzy. “[I]t’s safe to say that not since Clarence Darrow for the defense called prosecutor William Jennings Bryan himself to the stand has an American courtroom been so startled,” University of Baltimore law professor Garrett Epps says in The Atlantic. The question marked the first time in more than 10 years that Justice Thomas has spoken during oral arguments before the Court—the last time being February 22, 2006. The case concerned the right of a citizen previously accused of a “reckless” act of domestic abuse to own a gun. Thomas’ question: “Can you give me another area where a misdemeanor suspends a constitutional right?” The question reflected Thomas’s repeatedly stated belief that the Second Amendment right to bear arms has similar, if not exactly the same, components as the First Amendment right of free speech. Epps suggests that Thomas’s engagement in the oral arguments process may have to do with the loss of Justice Antonin Scalia, who died Feb. 13. Scalia, a frequent questioner during arguments before the Court, also shared many of Thomas’s conservative legal interpretations. “Monday’s surprise is powerful evidence that the Court today is a different place than it was on February 12,” Epps writes.