“Raised as a Son” Man Claims Justice Clarence Thomas Abandoned Him as a Teen

A man who Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas admittedly raised “as a son” now says the justice abandoned him while he was still a teen. Mark Martin, 32, is facing 25 years in a South Carolina prison on drug and gun charges. In 2007, Thomas told C-SPAN that he and his wife Ginni had taken in Martin at the age of six and were “raising him as a son.” Martin was 16 at the time he was speaking.

“For me, in so many ways, it’s rewarding because it’s brought me, again, full circle,” Thomas said in the interview. “I was about the age my grandfather was when he took my brother and me. And Mark was about the age my brother and I were when he took us in.”

However, Martin told Business Insider that Clarence and Ginni Thomas cut off contact with him when he was a freshman in high school. “I haven’t really heard much from them in a long time,” Martin explained. “I tried to communicate with them a couple of times, but I’ve never gotten any response.”

The couple reportedly has had no contact with Martin since he was 19. Martin recalled a life of privilege during his time with the Thomases. He traveled to more than 20 countries and spent summers vacationing with billionaire Republican Harlan Crow. Crow would later pay for Martin’s tuition at Randolph-Macon Academy, a military prep school, and Hidden Lake Academy, a residential therapeutic treatment center.

ProPublica reported last year that the fees for both schools exceeded $150,000. Thomas accepted the tuition and other gifts from Crow without reporting them. “I guess they looked into Randolph-Macon Academy because Harlan Crow actually graduated from there, so I guess that was behind their decision to send me there — and then apparently he helped finance the HLA trip, too,” Martin said.

Business Insider reported that when neither placement prevented Martin from acting out with minor drug use and other petty crimes, the Thomases cut him off. Thomas’ treatment of Martin contrasts with the way President Joe Biden has supported his son Hunter despite a drug addiction and a conviction on gun charges. Martin’s story highlights a stark difference in how the two prominent figures have handled familial responsibilities amid personal struggles.

As Martin faces a lengthy prison sentence, his past with the Thomases and his subsequent estrangement raise questions about the complex dynamics of their relationship and the broader implications for public figures managing personal and familial issues.