Appearance
Samuel Alito
Samuel A. Alito, Jr., Associate Justice, was born in Trenton, New Jersey, on April 1, 1950. He married Martha-Ann Bomgardner in 1985, and has two children - Philip and Laura. He served as a law clerk for Leonard I. Garth of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 1976-1977. He served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of New Jersey, 1977-1981, as Assistant to the Solicitor General, U.S. Department of Justice, 1981-1985, as Deputy Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, 1985-1987, and as U.S. Attorney, District of New Jersey, 1987-1990. He was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in 1990. President George W. Bush nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat January 31, 2006.
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)
Why critics call it impeachable
- The ruling overturned nearly 50 years of precedent protecting a constitutional right to abortion.
- Critics argue the majority relied on selective and inaccurate historical claims, disregarded reliance interests affecting millions, and imposed an ideological framework inconsistent with modern constitutional interpretation.
- The dissent warned that the decision undermines the Court’s legitimacy, weakens stare decisis, and threatens other substantive‑due‑process rights.
Ruling (official Supreme Court link)
- Supreme Court slip opinion (PDF):
Supreme Court slip opinion (PDF)
Vote
5–1–3
- Majority: Alito (author), Thomas, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett
- Concurring in judgment only: Roberts
- Dissent: Breyer, Sotomayor, Kagan
National Constitution Center summary (non‑paywalled):
National Constitution Center summary