Supreme Court's Thomas Will Not Be Referred to Justice Dept.

A judicial policymaking body on Thursday rejected a request by Democrat lawmakers to refer conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to the Department of Justice to examine claims that he failed to disclose gifts and travel provided by a wealthy benefactor.

The secretary to the U.S. Judicial Conference, the federal judiciary's top policymaking body, in a pair of letters, cited amendments Thomas had made to his annual financial disclosure reports that addressed several issues raised by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga.