Wisconsin Capitol Police have opted not to investigate the leak of a state Supreme Court abortion order in June, citing a conflict of interest. However, Chief Justice Annette Ziegler has informed the Associated Press that she is exploring alternative ways to address the leak. This decision follows the leak of a draft order revealing the court’s intention to hear a case brought by Planned Parenthood, seeking to establish abortion access as a right protected by the state constitution. Subsequently, the court officially accepted the case a week after the leak occurred. The leaked draft was obtained by online news outlet Wisconsin Watch.
Ziegler had initially urged an investigation into the leak on June 26, emphasizing unity among the court’s justices – four liberals and three conservatives – in condemning the breach and seeking to identify the source of the leak. Despite the call for action, the State Capitol Police were asked to investigate by the justices, with the department responsible for security at state office buildings, including the Capitol where the Supreme Court’s offices are situated. However, the police being under the administration of Democratic Governor Tony Evers resulted in a perceived conflict of interest due to the governor’s stance on the legality of abortions in Wisconsin.
While Governor Evers is not directly involved in the case surrounding the leaked order, his public support for legal abortions in the state raised concerns about the impartiality of any potential investigation involving his administration. The administration acknowledged the need for a thorough investigation and expressed hope that the Wisconsin Supreme Court would take appropriate steps to address the matter, despite the conflict of interest involving Capitol Police. Unlike the U.S. Supreme Court, the state Supreme Court lacks an independent law enforcement entity to conduct investigations into such leaks.
The incident in June is one of two abortion-related cases before the court, with the second case challenging a historical abortion ban from 1849 as outdated and superseded by a 1985 law permitting abortions up to a certain fetal development stage. Oral arguments for both cases are anticipated to take place later this year. Notably, investigations into the internal workings of the Wisconsin Supreme Court are rare and often contentious, as previously seen in a 2011 case involving accusations made by Justice Ann Walsh Bradley against then-Justice David Prosser.
