Justice Samuel Alito Defends “Courageous” Decision to Overturn Roe v. Wade
Justice Samuel Alito said the Supreme Court majority that overturned Roe v. Wade showed courage, and that the 2022 decision cost him friendships and brought death threats.
Alito spoke in an interview with CBS News chief legal correspondent Jan Crawford. CBS said the interview is set to air Monday.
Asked about difficult cases, he pointed to Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the ruling that overturned Roe.
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“Well, the leading example is Dobbs. I think that required courage by all of the justices in the majority,” Alito said. “It required courage to go ahead with that because of the implications.”
For pro-life advocates, that decision ended the nationwide abortion regime Roe had imposed since 1973 and returned the question to the states to let them protect babies.
Alito said the ruling also carried a personal cost. He said there are cases that have resulted in “the loss of old friendships,” and when asked whether he had lost friends over Dobbs, he answered, “Yes. Sure.”
He described the backlash as part of deciding controversial cases.
“It’s part of the job that you’re going to displease people by making decisions on controversial matters because one side or the other is going to really dislike you because of the decisions,” he said.
He also said justices should expect protest and worse. “You’re going to get protested. You’re going to have death threats. You’re going to have to wear a bulletproof vest today,” he said.
Alito called the threats and harassment a break from the past.
“The physical threats and the harassment represent something new in our society and something that’s quite disturbing, and I think it’s a danger for the courts and it’s a danger for others in public life,” he said.
