Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has released a new disclosure document about his personal finances.
The conservative-leaning judge submitted his 2022 annual financial disclosure report earlier this month, and the document was obtained by the Washington Examiner Thursday.
The nine-page disclosure follows criticism of Thomas from the left regarding his personal ethics.
Thomas had been scrutinized for accepting apparent gifts from Republican donor Harlan Crow — seemingly without reporting a series of vacation trips and expensive items in previous disclosures, according to ProPublica.
The judge discloses three different reimbursements to Crow in the first half of 2022 — citing transportation, meals and lodging.
Thomas also explains a real estate transaction he conducted with Crow — in which the justice recounts a “capital loss.”
Thomas sold a one-third interest in three homes in Savannah, Georgia in the 2014 transaction, which had formerly been used as rental properties.
Thomas stated that he had been unaware the final sale of the property interests had been a reportable transaction, having previously reported the rental income acquired from the homes.
“Filer and his wife had put between $50,000 to $75,000 into his mother’s home in capital improvements over the years, and therefore, the transaction amounted to a capital loss.”
Should Justice Thomas face ethics charges?
Yes: 10% (1 Votes)
No: 90% (9 Votes)
The judge also clarifies that bank accounts at three different financial institutions were inadvertently omitted in previous financial disclosure filings.
Thomas says that the accounts had combined account balances of under $50,000, under $70,000 and under $10,000 respectively.
Thomas did not report any gifts in the August document.
The justice describes a position at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University as his only non-investment income, other than his judicial salary.
Thomas attorney Elliot Berke pointed to the filings as consistent with Thomas’ high professional ethics in a statement.
My statement and executive summary on behalf of client Justice Clarence Thomas upon release of his 2022 financial disclosure report: https://t.co/0FB41uGFvi pic.twitter.com/kcIynFBpBr
— Elliot Berke (@elliotberke) August 31, 2023
“Over the course of his 44 years in public service in all three branches of government, Justice Thomas has always strived for full transparency and adherence to the law, including with respect to what personal travel needed to be reported.”
“Justice Thomas’s amended report answers — and utterly refutes — the charges trumped up in this partisan feeding frenzy.”
