In 1981, Justice Sandra O’Connor was nominated to the United States Supreme Court.
Sandra Day O’Connor, 93, former justice of the Supreme Court, has passed away.
At the age of 93, Sandra Day O’Connor passed away. She was the first woman to serve on the United States Supreme Court.
Dementia and a respiratory disease were the underlying causes of her death on Friday morning in Phoenix, Arizona, according to a statement from the US Supreme Court.
Prior to her 1981 appointment to the United States Supreme Court by then-President Ronald Reagan, Justice O’Connor was a trailblazing state legislator.
She retired in 2006 after more than 24 years on the bench.
John Jay O’Connor was fighting Alzheimer’s disease when his wife, a moderate conservative, stepped down from the bench to care for him. Justice Samuel Alito was nominated for the position by President George W. Bush to succeed her.
Justice O’Connor was praised by Chief US Supreme Court Justice John Roberts, who described her as “a daughter of the American Southwest” and said that she “blazed a historic trail as our Nation’s first female Justice.”
“She met that challenge with undaunted determination, indisputable ability, and engaging candour,” stated Judge Roberts.
He described her as a “fiercely independent defender of the rule of law, and an eloquent advocate for civics education.”
Three sons and six grandkids will continue Justice O’Connor’s legacy. In 2009, her spouse passed away.