0
No. Only Congress has the right to impeach a government official, including a Supreme Court Justice.
Impeachment is a two-step process; the impeachment phase is similar to a Grand Jury hearing, where charges (called "articles of impeachment") are presented and the House of Representatives determines whether the evidence is sufficient to warrant a trial. If the House vote passes by a simple majority, the defendant is "impeached," and proceeds to trial in the Senate.
The Senate trial, while analogous to a criminal trial, only convenes for the purpose of determining whether a Justice (or other officeholder) should be removed from office on the basis of the evidence presented at impeachment. The Senate must return a 2/3 Super Majority for conviction.
Only one Supreme Court Justice, Samuel Chase (one of the signatories to the Declaration of Independence), has ever been impeached. The House of Representatives accused Chase of letting his Federalist political leanings affect his rulings, and served him with eight articles of impeachment in late 1804. The Senate acquitted him of all charges in 1805, establishing the right of the judiciary to independent opinion. Chase continued on the Court until his death in June 1811.
Article I Section 2, the last sentence says, "The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment."
See also Article I Section 3, the sixth and seventh paragraphs, beginning with, "The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments."
For more information, see Related Questions, below.
No. A supreme court justice is appointed for life and can not be dismissed by the president. He/she can be removed from the position. Congress can impeach a justice for various wrong doings and removing him that way.
Still curious? Ask our experts.
Chat with our AI personalities
Ross
Rene
ProfessorAccording to Article I of the Constitution, the power of impeachment is vested in the Legislative branch.*
The House of Representatives brings charges, called "articles of impeachment," against officials it considers guilty of criminal or ethical violations. If a simple majority of the House finds sufficient evidence to support impeachment, the official proceeds to trial in the Senate.
Impeachment only serves to remove a judge or other official from office; there are no other penalties associates with this process.
Article I, Section 3, Clause 7: "Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States; but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law."
* This applies to judges and justices appointed under Article III of the Constitution, which includes those who serve on US District Courts, US Courts of Appeals, and the US Supreme Court, as well as certain courts of limited jurisdiction. Judges appointed under Article I, who mainly deal with the interaction between the public and departments or functions of the government (such as Social Security Disability Appeals), are removed by a different process.
For more information, see Related Questions, below.
No, the only branch that has impeachment powers is the Legislative branch (Congress). Article 1, Section 2 states that the House of Representatives has the sole power of impeachment. Article 1, Section 3 states that the Senate shall have the sole power to try impeachments.
For more information, see Related Questions, below.
Yes.
Under normal circumstances, a Supreme Court justice is awarded a lifetime commission.
A Supreme Court Justice may be impeached by the House of Representatives and removed from office if convicted in a Senate trial, but only for the same types of offenses that would trigger impeachment proceedings for any other government official under Articles I and II of the Constitution.
Article III, Section 1 states that judges of Article III courts shall hold their offices "during good behavior." "The phrase "good behavior" has been interpreted by the courts to equate to the same level of seriousness 'high crimes and misdemeanors" encompasses.
In addition, any federal judge may prosecuted in the criminal courts for criminal activity. If found guilty of a crime in a federal district court, the justice would face the same type of sentencing any other criminal defendant would. The district court could not remove him/her from the Bench. However, any justice found guilty in the criminal courts of any felony would certainly be impeached and, if found guilty, removed from office.
In the United States, impeachment is most often used to remove corrupt lower-court federal judges from office, but it's not unusual to find disgruntled special interest groups circulating petitions on the internet calling for the impeachment of one or all members of the High Court.
The Impeachment Process
Impeachment is a two-step process; the impeachment phase is similar to a Grand Jury hearing, where charges (called "articles of impeachment") are presented and the House of Representatives determines whether the evidence is sufficient to warrant a trial. If the House vote passes by a simple majority, the defendant is "impeached," and proceeds to trial in the Senate.
The House of Representatives indicts the accused on articles of impeachment, and, if impeached, the Senate conducts a trial to determine the party's guilt or innocence.
The Senate trial, while analogous to a criminal trial, only convenes for the purpose of determining whether a Justice, the President (or another officeholder) should be removed from office on the basis of the evidence presented at impeachment.
At the trial a committee from the House of Representatives, called "Managers," act as the prosecutors. Per constitutional mandate (Article I, Section 3), the Chief Justice of the United States (Supreme Court) must preside over the Senate trial of the President. If any other official is on trial, an "Impeachment Trial Committee" of Senators act as the presiding judges to hear testimony and evidence against the accused, which is then presented as a report to the remained of the Senate. The full Senate no longer participates in the hearing phase of the removal trial. This procedure came into practice in 1986 when the Senate amended its rules and procedures for impeachment and has been contested by several federal court judges, but the Supreme Court has declined to interfere in the process, calling the issue a political, not legal, matter.
At the conclusion of the trial, the full Senate votes and must return a two-thirds Super Majority for conviction. Convicted officials are removed from office immediately and barred from holding future office. The Senate trial, while analogous to a criminal trial, only convenes for the purpose of determining whether a Justice, the President (or another officeholder) should be removed from office on the basis of the evidence presented at impeachment.
Impeachment and Near Impeachment
Only one Supreme Court Justice, Samuel Chase (one of the signatories to the Declaration of Independence), has ever been impeached. The House of Representatives accused Chase of letting his Federalist political leanings affect his rulings, and served him with eight articles of impeachment in late 1804. The Senate acquitted him of all charges in 1805, establishing the right of the judiciary to independent opinion. Chase continued on the Court until his death in June 1811.
In 1957, at the height of McCarthyism, the Georgia General Assembly passed a joint resolution calling for "The Impeachment of Certain U.S. Supreme Court Justices" believed to be enabling Communism with their decisions. The resolution targeted Chief Justice Earl Warren and Associate Justices Hugo Black, William O. Douglas, Tom Campbell Clark, Felix Frankfurter, and Stanley Forman Reed (as well as several unnamed deceased Justices) for "...[usurping] the congressional power to make law in violation of Article I, Sections I and 8, and violated Sections 3 and 5 of the 14th Amendment and nullified the 10th Amendment of the Constitution."
For more information, see Related Questions, below.
No. The House of Representatives draws up charges against the President and the House votes on whether to impeach the President or not. The House acts as the prosecutor, the Senate sits as the jury, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presides as the judge. If the Senate (jury) the votes guilty, the President is simply removed from office. Once removed, there may or may not be a criminal or civil trial.
The supreme court is not given the power to impeach a president (or anyone else). Only the House of Representatives can do that.
For more information, see Related Questions, below.
Add your answer:
Earn +20 pts
Who is the highest judge of the US Supreme Court?
The Chief Justice presides over the US Supreme Court. At present, the Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court is John G. Roberts, Jr.
Who can appoint a justice into the supreme court?
In India only the President can appoint any Judge in the supreme court.
What sector does the supreme court judge and the national parks ranger work for in the government?
public
What is one way the president can check the powers of the supreme court?
Courts can judge legislative acts to be unconstitutional. This means that the Supreme Court can say that a law that the Senate has passed is unconstitutional.
Which judge of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta served as the Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court?
Honorable Rosemary Barkett
