| − | Because of his conservative court decisions and his activity in the [[Federalist Party]], Justice Chase in 1805 became the target of an [[impeachment]] effort led by [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Republican]] President [[Thomas Jefferson]]. Chase was impeached by the House on flimsy charges focusing on his flamboyant language. For example one article specified as grounds for removal Chase's "intemperate and inflammatory...peculiarly indecent and unbecoming ...highly unwarrantable" remarks to a Baltimore grand jury. The Senate voted against removal, establishing a precedent against the impeachment of federal judges for political reasons. But Chase, while he had been arrogant as a judge, had not committed great legal offenses. On no charge did the Senate vote the required two-thirds majority for conviction. The trial had three effects: it damaged the Jeffersonian party; it forced judges to improve their judicial decorum and avoid blatant partisanship to avoid impeachment, and it reinforced the principle of the independence of the judiciary in the United States. | + | Because of his conservative court decisions and his activity in the [[Federalist Party]], Justice Chase in 1805 became the target of an [[impeachment]] effort led by [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Republican]] President [[Thomas Jefferson]]. Chase was impeached by the House on flimsy charges focusing on his flamboyant language. For example, one article specified as grounds for removal Chase's "intemperate and inflammatory...peculiarly indecent and unbecoming ...highly unwarrantable" remarks to a Baltimore grand jury. The Senate voted against removal, establishing a precedent against the impeachment of federal judges for political reasons. But Chase, while he had been arrogant as a judge, had not committed great legal offenses. On no charge did the Senate vote the required two-thirds majority for conviction. The trial had three effects: it damaged the Jeffersonian party; it forced judges to improve their judicial decorum and avoid blatant partisanship to avoid impeachment, and it reinforced the principle of the independence of the judiciary in the United States. |