Crystal Clanton
Crystal Clanton, (born 1995/6), was appointed by Justice Clarence Thomas to be his clerk at the U.S. Supreme Court in February 2024 for the 2024-2025 court term.[1][2] Clanton is a 2022 graduate of the Antonin Scalia Law School and has previously clerked for Corey Maze, District Court Judge for the Northern District of Alabama. As of February 2024 she was clerking for William H. Pryor Jr., Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.[2]
Biography
According to The New Yorker, Clanton was accused of sending a text message in 2015, while she was national field director for Turning Point USA, saying "I HATE BLACK PEOPLE. Like fuck them all . . . I hate blacks. End of story." Clanton told The New Yorker, "I have no recollection of these messages and they do not reflect what I believe or who I am and the same was true when I was a teenager."[1][3]
In 2021 Maze and Pryor hired Clanton to clerk for each of them, first for Maze, then for Pryor. Seven Democratic members of Congress protested the hiring in a letter to Chief Justice John Roberts and Circuit Judge Charles Wilson, asking for an investigation, stating that Maze and Pryor "hired an individual with a history of nakedly racist and hateful conduct as a future law clerk in their chambers. Placing an individual with this history in such close proximity to judicial decision-making threatens to seriously undermine the public's faith in the federal judiciary." The investigation was not pursued after a ruling by the judicial council of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which stated that the judges had performed adequate due diligence, which included a reference letter from Justice Thomas.[4][5]
Following her departure from Turning Point USA, Clanton had worked for Ginni Thomas,[6] the Justice's wife, and had lived at the Thomas's house for almost a year. Ginni Thomas was a member of the Turning Point USA advisory council at the time of Clanton's departure.[5]
References
- ^ a b VanSickle, Abbie (24 February 2024). "Justice Thomas Hires Law Clerk Accused of Sending Racist Text Messages". New York Times. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ a b "Third Scalia Law Graduate Since 2021 Selected as SCOTUS Clerk". George Mason University - Antonin Scalia Law School. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ Mayer, Jane (21 December 2017). "A Conservative Nonprofit That Seeks to Transform College Campuses Faces Allegations of Racial Bias and Illegal Campaign Activity". The New Yorker. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ Johnson, Hank (10 November 2021). "House Chairs Urge Judiciary to Investigate Hiring of Law Clerk with History of Racist, Bigoted Conduct by Two Federal Judges". Hank Johnson Congressman - 4th District of Georgia. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
- ^ a b Weiss, Debra Cassens (January 2023). "Federal judges who hired law clerk accused of racist statements won't face misconduct complaints". ABA Journal. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ Birnbaum, Emily (6 September 2018). "Clarence Thomas' wife hired ex-Turning Point USA staffer who once said 'I hate blacks': report". The Hill. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
External links
- Rankin, Bill (14 January 2022). "Judge Pryor cleared of allegations involving hiring of controversial clerk". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- Marcus, Ruth (10 November 2023). "Opinion The Crystal Clanton case shows a system failure". Washington Post. Retrieved 25 February 2024.