 "Photo:")
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas visited campus for two days this week, but unless you are a law school student or a member of the local political elite, you weren't invited.
Thomas spent most of his time Tuesday and Wednesday rubbing shoulders with students and politicians at invite-only dinners and receptions. He also made the rounds to several law classes, which were also closed to the public.
Hiram Chodosh, Dean of the S.J. Quinney College of Law, said Thomas' visit was intended to be for law students only, and was designed to be private. Thomas is the law school's 2007 David T. Lewis Distinguished Jurist-in-Residence.
The school didn't publicize the event and made an agreement with Thomas that none of the events during his trip to Utah would be open to the public because, Chodosh said, Thomas had security concerns.
"Sadly, he receives frequent threats on his person," Chodosh said.
He said Thomas' trip was paid for with money from a private endowment.
University of Utah President Michael K. Young said while some students may be disappointed that they couldn't hear Thomas speak, it is not uncommon for high-profile justices to request a closed event while speaking on a college campus.
"If I were a law student, I'd be thrilled, (but) if I were an undergraduate in political science, I'd be a bit annoyed," Young said. "This was an educational program for the law school."
Thomas dined at Young's house alongside U administrators and state legislators Tuesday night.
Kate Conyers, a law student, said she got to hear Thomas speak three times during his campus visit. She said the justice tried to portray himself as not belonging to a particular political ideology, although he has a conservative voting record.
"He kept talking like he doesn't have just one ideology," she said. "On paper, no, I don't buy that…(but) he's very convincing."
Chodosh said every student in the law school had the opportunity to hear from Thomas and called his visit "inspiring."
"Justice Thomas was very engaging and down-to-earth," Chodosh said.
Thomas left the state last night.
