Washington — Arizona Republican Get together chairwoman Kelli Ward requested the Supreme Court docket on Wednesday to dam a subpoena for her cellphone data issued by the Home choose committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol.
In an emergency request to Justice Elena Kagan, who oversees purposes from the U.S. Court docket of Appeals for the ninth Circuit, Ward argued the subpoena from the Home panel is a "first-of-its-kind scenario" involving a request for cellphone data from the top of a state get together chair, sought by a congressional committee largely composed of members from the rival get together.
"If Dr. Ward's phone and textual content message data are disclosed, congressional investigators are going to contact each one who communicated along with her throughout and instantly after the tumult of the 2020 election. That's not hypothesis, it's a certainty. There is no such thing as a different cause for the committee to hunt this data," Ward's legal professionals wrote. "There may be no higher chill on public participation in partisan politics than a name, go to, or subpoena, from federal investigators."
The committee issued a subpoena to T-Cellular, Ward's cellphone supplier, in January, looking for name data, cellphone numbers, textual content messages and IP addresses that communicated with Ward's quantity after the 2020 election. The Arizona GOP chair was amongst a bunch of individuals tied to an unsuccessful scheme to have a slate of so-called alternate electors solid electoral votes for Trump, who misplaced the state to President Biden.
However Ward filed a request in federal court docket to quash the subpoena, and the committee in flip known as on the court docket to dismiss the case a number of months later. After the district court docket granted the request from Home investigators, Ward turned to the U.S. Court docket of Appeals for the ninth Circuit. The California-based appeals court docket, nonetheless, upheld the decrease court docket's ruling that allowed the Home committee to acquire the data.
In her submitting with the Supreme Court docket, Ward mentioned her case has "profound precedential implications for future congressional investigations and political associational rights underneath the First Modification," notably given the occasions it includes: the 2020 presidential election and Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol.
Whereas the choose committee doesn't "mete out punishment," Ward argued, turning over cellphone data to the panel dangers exposing the folks she was in touch with to congressional or federal investigations, in addition to public criticism.
"In a case like this the punishment is the method; the hurt comes from the concern that your views will probably be uncovered, that you may be the subsequent individual to count on a knock in your door from authorities investigators, and that you could be be required to face the disastrous private and monetary penalties of getting to retain counsel and seem earlier than the committee to reply in your political affiliations and opinions," Ward advised the Supreme court docket. "This units a horrible precedent for the way forward for public participation in American politics."
Ward is the newest Republican to ask the Supreme Court docket to intervene in instances stemming from investigations into the occasions surrounding the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.
Trump final 12 months requested the excessive court docket to dam the Nationwide Archives and Information Administration from turning over his White Home data to the Home panel, which the justices declined to do, and GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina requested the court docket to briefly maintain him from having to testify earlier than a Georgia grand jury.
Justice Clarence Thomas on Monday briefly paused the decrease court docket order that required him to reply questions earlier than the grand jury, which is investigating efforts in Georgia to reverse the result of the 2020 election.