Sandra Day O'Connor
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| Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Term in office |
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| September 25, 1981 – January 31, 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Potter Stewart |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Alito |
| Nominated by | Ronald Reagan |
| Born | March 26, 1930 El Paso, Texas |
Sandra Day O'Connor (born March 26, 1930) is an American jurist who served as the first female Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. Due to her case-by-case approach to jurisprudence and her relatively moderate political views, she was the crucial swing vote of the Court for many of her final years on the bench. In 2001, Ladies' Home Journal ranked her as the second most powerful woman in America.[1]
Prior to joining the Supreme Court, she was a politician and jurist in Arizona.[2] She was nominated to the Court by President Ronald Reagan and served for over twenty-four years. On July 1, 2005, she announced her intention to retire effective upon the confirmation of her successor. Justice Samuel Alito, nominated to take her seat in October 2005, received confirmation on January 31, 2006. O'Connor is currently the only Retired Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
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[edit] Early career
In spite of her accomplishments at law school, no law firm in California was willing to hire her as a lawyer, although one firm did offer her a position as a legal secretary. She therefore turned to public service, taking a position as Deputy County Attorney of San Mateo County, California from 1952–1953 and as a civilian attorney for Quartermaster Market Center, Frankfurt, Germany from 1954–1957. From 1958–1960, she practiced law in the Maryvale area of the Phoenix metropolitan area, and served as Assistant Attorney General of Arizona from 1965–1969.
In 1969 she was appointed to the Arizona State Senate and was subsequently re-elected as a Republican to two two-year terms. In 1973, she became the first woman to serve as a state senate majority leader in any state.
In 1975, she was elected judge of the Maricopa County Superior Court and served until 1979, when she was appointed to the Arizona Court of Appeals by Democratic governor Bruce Babbitt. During her time in Arizona state government, she served in all three branches.
[edit] Current activities and memberships
[edit] Speeches on independent judiciary
On March 9, 2006, during a speech at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., O'Connor said some political attacks on the independence of the courts pose a direct threat to the constitutional freedoms of Americans. She said any reform of system is debatable as long as it is not motivated by "nakedly partisan reasoning" retaliation because congressmen or senators dislike the result of the cases. Courts interpret the law as it was written, not as the congressmen might have wished it was written, and "it takes a lot of degeneration before a country falls into dictatorship, but we should avoid these ends by avoiding these beginnings."
On September 19, 2006, Justice O'Connor echoed her concerns for an independent judiciary during the Dedication Address at the Elon University School of Law.
On September 27, 2006, Justice O'Connor published an op-ed in Wall Street Journal titled "The Threat to Judicial Independence", in which she decried recent efforts to curtail the independence of the judiciary (such as South Dakota's J.A.I.L. 4 Judges initiative and the attempts by some members of Congress to strip the federal judiciary of its jurisdictional ability to hear certain Constitutional claims). The next day, Justice O'Connor co-hosted and spoke at a conference at Georgetown University Law Center titled "Fair and Independent Courts: A Conference on the State of the Judiciary."[3]
[edit] College of William and Mary
On October 4, 2005, President Gene Nichol of the College of William and Mary announced that O'Connor had accepted[4] the largely ceremonial role of becoming the 23rd Chancellor of the College, replacing Henry Kissinger, and following in the position held by Margaret Thatcher, Chief Justice Warren Burger, and President George Washington. The Investiture Ceremony was held April 7, 2006.
[edit] Jamestown 2007
In February, 2006, it was announced that the retired Justice will chair the Jamestown 2007 celebration at Jamestown, Virginia which commemorates the 400th anniversary of the founding of the Jamestown Settlement in 1607. Her appearances in Jamestown will dovetail with her appearances and speeches as chancellor at the nearby College of William and Mary.
[edit] Retirement and service on United States Courts of Appeals
In October 2006, Justice O'Connor sat as a member of panels of the United States Courts of Appeals for the Second, Eighth, and Ninth Circuits, to hear arguments in one day's cases in each court.[5]
As a Retired Supreme Court Justice (roughly equivalent to senior status for judges of lower federal courts), Justice O'Connor is entitled to receive a full salary, maintain a staffed office with at least one law clerk, and to hear cases on a part-time basis in the federal District Courts and Courts of Appeals.
[edit] Other facts and information
O'Connor is an avid golfer who scored a hole-in-one in 2000 at the Paradise Valley Country Club in Arizona. [6] [7]
In 2002, O'Connor was inducted into the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame. [8]
In 2004, she gave a reading during the state funeral of Ronald Reagan.
On September 8, 2004, Redwood City, California dedicated the courtroom of the renovated historical courthouse (now a museum) to O'Connor.[9]
In 2005, she wrote a children's book titled Chico (ISBN 0-525-47452-8), which gives an autobiographical description of her childhood.
For her commitment to the ideals of "Duty, Honor, Country," she was awarded the prestigious Sylvanus Thayer Award by the United States Military Academy in 2005, becoming only the third woman to receive the award.
On October 18, 2005, Justice O'Connor was appointed Grand Marshal of the Tournament of Roses. She participated in the 117th annual Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California on January 2, 2006 and started the 92nd Rose Bowl game with a coin toss on January 4. Coincidentally, the parade was conducted in heavy rain for the first time since 1955, when the Grand Marshal had been Chief Justice Earl Warren.
On April 5, 2006, Arizona State University's College of Law was renamed the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law in her honor.[10]
On May 14, 2006, Justice O'Connor was the commencement speaker at William and Mary Law School, where she is also university chancellor.
On May 22, 2006, Yale University granted Justice O'Connor an honorary doctoral degree at Yale's 305th commencement.
On September 19, 2006, Justice O'Connor delivered the Dedication Address for the Elon University School of Law and accept an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Earlier that day, she delivered the Fall Convocation Address at Elon University, where she accepted a Doctor of Laws degree.
In 1990, Justice O'Connor was present, along with Warren Burger at the dedication of the Warren Burger Law Library at Burger's alma mater, William Mitchell College of Law.
[edit] References
- Steve Lash. Trailblazer for women determined big issues. Tennesseean.com. Retrieved on July 22, 2005.
- The Pointer View. Academy names O'Connor as this year's Thayer Award recipient. pointerview.com. Retrieved on October 19, 2005.
- E.J. Montini. "Rehnquist is No. 1, O'Connor is No. 3, Baloney is No. 2.", Arizona Republic, (July 12, 2005).[1]
- Sandra Day O'Connor and H. Alan Day (2002). Lazy B: Growing Up on a Cattle Ranch in the American Southwest. Random House. ISBN 0-375-50724-8.
- ^ http://www.townhall.com/columnists/JohnMcCaslin/2001/11/07/mccaslins_beltway_beat
- ^ Sandra Day O'Connor, Judges of the United States Courts, Federal Judicial Center. Retrieved on March 21, 2006.
- ^ Georgetown University Law Center. Fair and Independent Courts: A Conference on the State of the Judiciary. Press release. Retrieved on 2006-11-11.
- ^ College of William and Mary announcement of O'Connor's appointment to Chancellor post. Retrieved on November 18, 2005.
- ^ Mulcahy, Ned (2006-10-07). Paper Chase: O'Connor to hear Second Circuit cases. Jurist. Retrieved on 2006-11-11.
- ^ TIME Magazine Archive Article — Off The Bench? — Feb. 26, 2001. Retrieved on November 18, 2005.
- ^ GolfDigest.com - Will Augusta come calling?. Retrieved on November 18, 2005.
- ^ Cowgirl Hall of Fame. Retrieved on November 18, 2005.
- ^ Sanda Day O'Connor at courthouse
- ^ http://www.law.asu.edu/?id=9761
[edit] External links
- General biographical information
- Additional information
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- Read Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports regarding Justice O'Connor
- "O'Connor not bothered by delayed retirement.", Associated Press September 28, 2005.
- "Sandra Day O'Connor prepares for final days on Supreme Court.", Associated Press September 19, 2005.
- Cases in which O'Connor has been the deciding vote (July 1, 2005)
- Farewell comments from her fellow justices (July 1, 2005)
- Centrist justice sought 'social stability'
- Yahoo!: Sandra Day O'Connor directory category
| Preceded by Potter Stewart |
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States September 25, 1981 – January 31, 2006 |
Succeeded by Samuel Alito |
| Preceded by Samuel Alito |
United States order of precedence as of 2006 |
Succeeded by Henry Paulson |
| Judicial opinions of Sandra Day O'Connor | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maricopa County, Arizona Superior Court (1975 - 1979), Arizona Court of Appeals (1980 - 1981) | |||||
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| Supreme Court of the United States (September 25, 1981 - January 31, 2005) | |||||
| (organized by term) | |||||
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| Members of the Iraq Study Group |
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| Baker (Co-chair) • Hamilton (Co-chair) Eagleburger • Jordan • Meese • O'Connor • Panetta • Perry • Robb • Simpson |
| Persondata | |
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| NAME | O'Conner, Sandra Day |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | U.S. Supreme Court justice |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 26, 1930 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | El Paso, Texas, United States |
| DATE OF DEATH | living |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
Categories: 1930 births | American Episcopalians | Arizona lawyers | Arizona State Senators | Breast cancer patients | California lawyers | English Americans | Living people | People from El Paso, Texas | People from Phoenix, Arizona | Prosecutors | Stanford University alumni | United States Supreme Court justices | Lawyers | Ranchers
