Ethics Questions Raised by Secret Recordings of Justices

To the Editor:

Re “In Secret Recording, Alito Endorses Nation of ‘Godliness’” (news article, June 11):

Lauren Windsor, a self-described “advocacy journalist,” poses dishonestly as a Catholic conservative at the annual Supreme Court Historical Society fund-raising event, and engages Justice Samuel Alito and Chief Justice John Roberts in a game of “gotcha.” Her behavior is ethically wrong on so many levels.

She is at a private event, not open to journalists. She did not disclose that she was a journalist. She was secretly wired and recorded private conversations without disclosure or consent. She baits them with leading questions, trying to trap them into agreeing with her stated opinions. One reasonable interpretation is that Justice Alito was agreeing merely to be polite.

Are there times when the ends justify the means? Yes, but this is not one. Lauren Windsor is no brave agent working to trap a drug gang leader, or working in the resistance behind enemy lines. Most decent people of all political persuasions will be disgusted by her behavior and sympathize with the justices who were the victims of her dishonesty.

How many justices will attend next year, and if so, how many will be willing to talk to anyone other than a close and trusted friend? This is just one more example on the road to incivility.

Mary Ann Lynch
Cape Elizabeth, Maine

To the Editor:

It is crucial not to conflate the ethics of how these statements of Justice Samuel Alito were obtained, and what the implications of these statements are. Regardless of the circumstances, it is clear that Justice Alito is a religious extremist of Manichaean, us-versus-them thinking.

It is equally clear that he sees his role as a jurist to use his position on the Supreme Court to impose his individual religious beliefs on all of society. I consider it unacceptable and very dangerous for any Supreme Court justice to make their legal judgments in a way to ensure that their own personal religious beliefs “win” some great moral battle over “godliness.”