Clarence Thomas is under fresh scrutiny over school fees of his grandnephew

According to a recent report by non-profit news organization ProPublica, billionaire Republican donor Harlan Crow paid for the private school tuition fees of Mark Martin, the grandnephew of US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Crow, who has previously treated Justice Thomas and his wife to luxurious holidays, claimed he frequently pays for tuition fees out of his own pocket.

This revelation comes amid increased scrutiny of ethics and disclosures at America’s highest court, where long-standing rules require Supreme Court justices to file annual disclosures of gifts. The report states that Justice Thomas did not publicly declare the tuition fees paid for his grandnephew by Crow, although he had declared a similar payment from another friend in the past.

In response to the reports, the Supreme Court has been criticized for a lack of accountability, and Democratic senators have called for an investigation into Justice Thomas. Republican senators, however, have accused their counterparts of targeting the court for political reasons, as the Supreme Court currently has a conservative majority.