Boyle Acknowledges Ethical Missteps

Today the Associated Press reported that Fourth Circuit nominee Terrence Boyle acknowledged, in a letter to Senators Frist and Specter, that while a federal district court judge, he improperly sat on four different cases involving companies in which he or his family held stock. He denied that he did anything wrong in four other cases (though he fails to explain why his financial disclosure forms for the years in question show that he did). Judge Boyle chalks up the problems to his aides’ screening errors. It is unclear, though, whether his letter might salvage his confirmation prospects, which have been damaged not only by ethics troubles, but by his problematic record in civil rights cases, opposition from a number of police organizations, and his high rate of reversal. Senator Harry Reid has threatened to filibuster Judge Boyle 's nomination if it is brought to the Senate floor.