Protesters flocked to the Supreme Court late Monday evening after a draft opinion from the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked to Politico.
The 98-page draft opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito is the first document of this magnitude to be leaked from the Supreme Court.
In the draft, which was written in February and may have changed since, Justice Alito wrote, “we hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled.”
“It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives,” the draft, which is titled “Opinion of the Court” continued.
The Politico story was published just after 8:30 p.m., and by 10 p.m. local time a crowd had already gathered at the court — with more protesters consistently arriving throughout the evening.
Barricades were also installed outside the court within a half an hour of the news breaking.
Right now: Barricades are up around the Supreme Court building, just minutes after reports from Politico were leaked indicating SCOTUS has voted to overturn Roe v. Wade. pic.twitter.com/LxR9rbs6TF
— Cami Mondeaux (@cami_mondeaux) May 3, 2022
Crowd gathered outside the US Supreme Court tonight @CNN pic.twitter.com/68WE7vufZo
— Gabe Cohen (@GabeCohenNews) May 3, 2022
Breaking: Protesters have already gathered at the Supreme Court building in Washington DC
To protest an alleged leaked draft that struck down the Initial ruling in Roe v. Wade casee #RoeVWade pic.twitter.com/3FB6rQJ3QC— 444CNews (@444CNews) May 3, 2022
Around 200 people at an impromptu protest in front of the Supreme Court tonight #roevwade pic.twitter.com/AKgzbExVA8
— Moira Warburton (@moirawarburton) May 3, 2022
Current scene outside SCOTUS pic.twitter.com/JpOzb4MCQs
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) May 3, 2022
Roe v. Wade remains in place until the opinion is signed. Votes and drafts may change up until that point.
If it is overturned, laws regarding abortion will be left for individual states to decide.
According to the Politico report, “the three Democratic-appointed justices – Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan – are working on one or more dissents,” it added that “How Chief Justice John Roberts will ultimately vote, and whether he will join an already written opinion or draft his own, is unclear.”
Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett had voted with Alito — per the report.
Just before 11 p.m., pro-abortion protesters got into a heated exchange with pro-life activists who had also descended on the court.
A few pro-life protesters and pro-abortion protesters got into verbal confrontations outside the Supreme Court. Guy in the long green shirt is on the pro-abortion side. pic.twitter.com/9PLneomwhA
— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) May 3, 2022
Serious tension between protesters & counter-protesters @scotus pic.twitter.com/rqwE0KuEg5
— Jordan Chamberlain (@jordylancaster) May 3, 2022
Catholic University students quietly praying the rosary. Angry protestors scream in the background. pic.twitter.com/KLw69qXc1l
— Douglas Blair (@DouglasKBlair) May 3, 2022
At least one fight broke out.
A small fight broke out between presumably between a supporter of the draft and a pro-choice supporter. No arrests have been made in front of the #SupremeCourt as of yet. Other than this, the protest has been overwhelmingly peaceful. pic.twitter.com/w5ztzdcdx6
— Ice Analytics (@ice_analytics) May 3, 2022
Prior to the confrontation between the opposing sides, the crowd was largely peaceful with no reported arrests as of 3:00 a.m. local time.
The protest at the Supreme Court is currently ongoing. Timcast will be continuing to provide updates as the situation unfolds.
