If Brett Kavanaugh is confirmed by the Senate it doesn’t mean he’ll definitely sit on the high court for life. Given the credible allegations against him, it is very possible that he would later be impeached from the Supreme Court. He might also be charged with sex crimes in the state of Maryland, and eventually go to jail if he is found guilty.
Many people believe that, given the firm resolve of Dr. Christine Ford that was displayed during her testimony yesterday, she will not just give up if he is confirmed to the Supreme Court.
She has persistently been making her claims against Kavanaugh for months. She has suffered great inconvenience and threats to her personal safety. Who really thinks that she will just walk away if the man she is accusing ends up on the highest court in the land?
It is very possible that she will press criminal charges against Kavanaugh if necessary to get him removed from the court. She could do that in Montgomery County, Maryland, where the assaults against her occurred.
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Also keep in mind that Michael Avenatti’s client Julie Swetnick has completed sworn documents alleging further (and more serious) sexual assault crimes against Kavanaugh. These also took place in Montgomery County and it is very possible that if Kavanaugh’s confirmation is pushed through quickly over the next few days that Avenatti and Swetnick will take further legal action.
And in addition to the sex crimes accusations, there have been several accusations of criminal perjury against Trump’s Supreme Court nominee.
“A judge is not exempt from criminal laws, including perjury. It is conceivable that at some point in the future Kavanaugh could be investigated, charged and prosecuted for crimes, and if that happened he could possibly go to jail.â€
Last night the Washington Post ran an article discussing the chances of state criminal charges against Kavanaugh in Maryland. This article begins:
“The national spotlight trained on alleged crimes that Brett M. Kavanaugh may have committed decades ago in suburban Maryland has some people asking: Why haven’t the local police launched a criminal investigation?â€
“The first answer is that no accuser of Kavanaugh’s has come forward to speak with police in Montgomery County and request an investigation, officials said late Thursday.”
The Post article also discusses the very complex rules concerning the statute of limitations on sex crimes in Maryland. No conclusion can be reached on the statute of limitations at this time, just as no conclusion can be reached on Kavanaugh’s guilt without a full criminal trial.
However it is very clear that when Ford’s accusations are added to Swetnick’s sworn accusations there is an excellent chance that Kavanaugh could be found guilty of a crime. At the very least, they could press charges which would lead to a criminal investigation.
According to Legal Match, “In Maryland, the criminal statute of limitations varies depending on the severity of the offense. The criminal statutes of limitations include: Felony sexual offenses: no statute of limitations, and Misdemeanor offenses: one year from the event.â€
So the first step would be to determine of the charges against Kavanaugh were felonies, and it is possible that conclusion would be reached.
This means we could be faced with the specter of a sitting Supreme Court Justice being subjected to criminal charges and criminal trial proceedings. These could include charges for state felony sex crimes as well as federal perjury charges.
Criminal charges against Kavanaugh would occur outside of a process in Congress, where impeachment proceedings could also be going on. When Democrats take control of the House and the Senate they very well may seek to impeach Kavanaugh from the Supreme Court. (They could also impeach him from his current position as a federal judge following different procedures.)
If congressional proceedings prove he committed sex crimes or perjury, Kavanaugh could be impeached and forced to leave the Supreme Court.
It appears that even though Judge Kavanaugh will probably be confirmed as a Supreme Court Justice, he will not escape his potential legal jeopardy forever. Future impeachment proceedings and criminal trials may very well be in his future.
I am a lifelong Democrat with a passion for social justice and progressive issues. I have degrees in writing, economics and law from the University of Iowa.
