The Supreme Court limited the sweep of a federal law on Wednesday aimed at public corruption, ruling that it did not apply to gifts and payments meant to reward actions taken by state and local officials.
The 6-to-3 ruling, which split along ideological lines, was the latest in a series of decisions cutting back federal anti-corruption laws.
Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh, writing for a conservative majority, said that the question in the case was whether federal law makes it a crime for state and local officials to accept such gratuities after the fact.
He wrote, “The answer is no.”Federal prosecutors’ interpretation of the law created traps for public officials, leaving them to guess what gifts were allowed, he added.
If they guessed wrong, the opinion continued, the officials could face up to a decade in prison.
Persons:
Brett M, Kavanaugh, “