Supreme Court Justice Gorsuch questions overcriminalization during book tour at presidential libraries

Gorsuch spoke at the Richard Nixon library in Yorba Linda, California, on the 50th anniversary of Nixon’s resignation.

Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch criticized the expansion of federal criminal law during remarks on Friday, telling an audience in California that Americans’ liberties are at risk “when there’s a law against everything.” “What happens to your respect for law when everybody’s a criminal?” Gorsuch said during remarks at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum. “I am not looking to roll back to 1789,” the conservative said. “I’m just asking for maybe a dose of common sense along the way.” Gorsuch, former President Donald Trump’s first nominee to the Supreme Court, who at times has demonstrated a streak of libertarianism, is on a publicity tour for a book he published Tuesday. “Over Ruled: The Human Toll of Too Much Law” focuses on the expansion of federal regulations and what he describes as a convoluted series of federal crimes that no one can fully follow. Gorsuch spoke at the library in Yorba Linda, California, on the 50th anniversary of Nixon’s resignation. The justice did not mention the historic event. Both in the book and during his remarks, Gorsuch tells the story of John Yates, a fisherman who was caught with undersized red grouper. Yates ordered the offending fish to be tossed overboard before authorities could confirm he had violated federal fishing regulations, according to court records.