Justice Alito became ill at March event, treated for dehydration, Supreme Court says
United States Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito poses for an official portrait at the East Conference Room of the Supreme Court building on October 7, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON - Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito became ill during an event in Philadelphia last month and was treated for dehydration before returning to his suburban Washington home, a court spokesperson said Friday.
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Alito's illness did not require an overnight hospital stay and he was back on the bench the following Monday, spokeswoman Patricia McCabe said in a statement.
Alito was an active questioner during arguments that day in an important case about mailed ballots and participated in all the court's hearings over the ensuing two weeks.
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Alito, who turned 76 on Wednesday, is the second-oldest member of the court, after 77-year-old Justice Clarence Thomas.
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The episode was first reported by CNN, which also said the treatment was administered at a Philadelphia hospital. The court did not say where Alito had been taken.
Alito was driven by his security detail from Washington to what CNN said was a dinner following a Federalist Society panel that looked at his 20 years on the court.
When he didn't feel well in the evening, "he agreed with his security detail’s recommendation to see a physician before the three-hour drive home" to northern Virginia, McCabe said. He was given fluids for dehydration, she said.
While the justice has not said anything about retirement, speculation has swirled that Alito might soon step down, which would give President Donald Trump the chance to appoint a fourth justice, after the three who were confirmed during his first term.
Big picture view:
The incident is the latest example of the justices' reticence to discuss their health, at least until the news somehow leaks.
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In 2020, the court confirmed that Chief Justice John Roberts had spent a night in the hospital after a fall that required stitches in his forehead, only after the Washington Post reported it first.
What's next:
While Alito is young by Supreme Court standards, he might not want to stay around and gamble on the possibility of Democrats flipping the Senate in the November elections and seeing a Democrat capture the White House two years later.
Retiring in the summer would allow Trump to name a similarly conservative but much younger replacement who would almost certainly win confirmation from the Republican-led Senate.
The Source: The Associated Press contributed to this report. The information in the story comes primarily from a statement by Supreme Court spokeswoman Patricia McCabe, who provided details about Justice Samuel Alito’s illness, treatment, and return to the bench. This story was reported from Los Angeles.