WASHINGTON (CNN) — Chief Justice John Roberts suffered a seizure at his summer home off the coast of Maine, causing him to fall, the Supreme Court said Monday.
Roberts was conscious after the fall, which happened at his vacation home near Port Clyde, Maine, Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg told CNN.
The chief justice was taken to a nearby hospital where he is expected to stay overnight.
Roberts has “fully recovered from the incident,” and a neurological evaluation “revealed no cause for concern,” the Supreme Court said.
A hospital spokesman would not discuss the case, citing privacy concerns.
A witness said Roberts fell on a dock, and his injuries did not appear serious.
Roberts, 52, experienced a similar episode years ago. Sources close to the chief justice said Roberts suffered an unexplained seizure in 1993, soon after his first nomination to the D.C. circuit stalled in the Senate.
Friends blamed the seizure on stress from the confirmation fight, and Roberts limited certain activities such as driving after it happened. But after a few weeks, the problem went away, and he has since not suffered any health crises, the sources said.
President Bush was notified about Monday’s incident during an Oval Office meeting, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.
Roberts recently spent two weeks in Europe, where he taught a law course in Vienna, Austria, and attended a judicial conference in Paris, France, court sources said. Roberts was at the Supreme Court late last week before traveling to Maine.
The chief justice bought his vacation home in June 2006. It is one of 20 to 30 homes on the 400-acre island, according to a town official in St. George.
Roberts was appointed by Bush and has served as chief justice since September 2005.
Roberts served on the influential federal appellate court for the District of Columbia before being nominated to the Supreme Court after the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist.
