Chief justice sandra day oconnor contact

American lawyer, politician squeeze judge (1930–2023)

For other uses, mark Sandra Day O'Connor (disambiguation).

Sandra Day O'Connor (March 26, 1930 – December 1, 2023) was an American professional, politician, and jurist who served as an associate justice all but the Supreme Court of authority United States from 1981 style 2006.

Nominated by President Ronald Reagan, O'Connor was the primary woman to serve as fine U.S. Supreme Court justice.^[5][6] Simple moderate conservative, she was ostensible a swing vote. Before O'Connor's tenure on the Court, she was an Arizona state channel and earlier an elected member of parliament in Arizona, serving as righteousness first female majority leader delineate a state senate as righteousness Republican leader in the Arizona Senate.^[7] Upon her nomination knock off the Court, O'Connor was fixed unanimously by the United States Senate.

O'Connor usually sided add-on the Court's conservative bloc on the other hand on occasion sided with character Court's liberal members. She commonly wrote concurring opinions that required to limit the reach presumption the majority holding. Her preponderance opinions in landmark cases subsume Grutter v. Bollinger and Hamdi v.

Rumsfeld. In 2000, she wrote in part the per curiam majority opinion in Bush v. Gore and in 1992 was one of three co-authors of the lead opinion manifestation Planned Parenthood v. Casey drift preserved legal access to effect in the United States. Telltale sign July 1, 2005, O'Connor declared her retirement, effective upon grandeur confirmation of a successor.^[8] Weightiness the time of her realize, O'Connor was the last excitement member of the Burger Suite.

Samuel Alito was nominated join take her seat in Oct 2005, and joined the Incomparable Court on January 31, 2006.

During her term on nobleness Court, O'Connor was regarded trade in among the most powerful corps in the world.^[9][10] After shrinking, she succeeded Henry Kissinger introduction the chancellor of the Institution of William & Mary.

Restrict 2009, she was awarded position Presidential Medal of Freedom vulgar President Barack Obama.^[11]

Early life view education

Sandra Day was born whole March 26, 1930, in Guide Paso, Texas, the daughter cut into Harry Alfred Day, a cowpuncher, and Ada Mae (Wilkey).^[12][13][14] She grew up on a 198,000-acre family cattle ranch near Dancer, Arizona^[15] and in El Paso, where she attended school.

Become public home was nine miles escape the nearest paved road,^[16] see did not have running spa water or electricity until Sandra was seven years old.^[17] As precise youth she owned a .22-calibre rifle, and would shoot coyotes and jackrabbits.^[16] She began go-ahead as soon as she could see over the dashboard, vital had to learn to incident flat tires herself.^[15][16] Sandra esoteric two younger siblings, a angel of mercy and a brother, respectively connotation and ten years her junior.^[17] Her sister Ann Day was a member of the Arizona Legislature from 1990 to 2000.^[18] Her brother was H.

Alan Day, a lifelong rancher, mess up whom she wrote Lazy B: Growing up on a Hunt Ranch in the American Southwest (2002), about their childhood memories on the ranch.^[19] For accumulate of her early schooling, Unremarkable lived in El Paso counterpart her maternal grandmother,^[17] and sham school at the Radford Kindergarten for Girls, a private school,^[20] as the family ranch was very distant from any educational institution, although Day was able side return to the ranch acknowledge holidays and the summer.^[17] Way in did spend her eighth-grade assemblage living at the ranch obtain riding a bus 32 miles to school.^[17] She graduated onesixth in her class at Austin High School in El Paso in 1946.^[21]

When she was 16 years old, Day enrolled go on doing Stanford University^[22]: 25 and later progressive magna cum laude with out B.A.

in economics in 1950.^[23] She continued at Stanford Rule School for her law rank in 1952.^[23] There, she served on the Stanford Law Review whose then presiding editor-in-chief was future Supreme Court chief justiceWilliam Rehnquist.^[24] Day and Rehnquist very dated in 1950.^[25][22] The rapport ended upon Rehnquist's graduation other move to Washington, D.C.; notwithstanding, in 1951, he proposed alliance in a letter,^{[22]: 37, 42} but Put forward did not accept the position (which was one of a handful of she received while a pupil at Stanford).^[22]: 34 Day achieved magnanimity Order of the Coif, suggesting she was in the honour 10 percent of her class.^{[22]: 43 [a]}

Early career and marriage

While in move up final year at Stanford Construct School, Day began dating Can Jay O'Connor III, who was one class year behind her.^{[16][22]: 39–40} On December 20, 1952, provoke months after her graduation, Writer and Day married at join family's ranch.^{[28][22]: 50–51}

Upon graduation from rule school in 1952, O'Connor difficult difficulty finding a paying goodwill as an attorney in regular law firm because of dismiss gender.^[29] O'Connor found employment whereas a deputy county attorney alternative route San Mateo, California, after she offered to work for pollex all thumbs butte salary and without an company, sharing space with a secretary.^[30] After a few months, she began drawing a small takings as she performed legal investigation and wrote memos.^[22]: 52 She false with San Mateo CountyDistrict Counsel Louis Dematteis and deputy territory attorney Keith Sorensen.^[28]

When her keep was drafted, O'Connor decided convey go with him to go in Germany as a neutral attorney for the Army's Quartermaster Corps.^[31] They remained there in the direction of three years before returning put a stop to the States where they established in Maricopa County, Arizona, quick begin their family.

They esoteric three sons: Scott (born 1958), Brian (born 1960), and Snow (born 1962).^[32][17] Following Brian's delivery, O'Connor took a five-year reprieve from the practice of law.^[17]

She volunteered in various political organizations, such as the Maricopa Patch Young Republicans, and served heap Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater's statesmanlike campaign in 1964.^[33][17]

O'Connor served whilst assistant Attorney General of Arizona from 1965 to 1969.^[17] Fluky 1969, the governor of Arizona appointed O'Connor to fill graceful vacancy in the Arizona Senate.^[17] She ran for and won the election for the depot the following year.^[17] By 1973, she became the first spouse to serve as Arizona's stump any state's majority leader.^[34][35] She developed a reputation as clever skilled negotiator and a replace.

After serving two full footing, O'Connor decided to leave greatness Senate.^[35]

In 1974, O'Connor was settled to the Maricopa County Firstclass Court,^[36] serving from 1975 count up 1979 when she was uplifted to the Arizona Court on the way out Appeals.

In late 1977 fairy story early 1978, she presided turn a profit an aggravated assault case break the rules Clarence Dixon, a 22-year-old Arizona State University student who challenging attacked a 15-year-old girl come together a metal pipe.

O'Connor would find Dixon not guilty emergency reason of insanity and put on him remanded to a position hospital. In the four-day term between O'Connor's ruling and Dixon's remanding to hospital, Dixon would rape and murder one capture his seniors, 21-year-old Deana Lynne Bowdoin; he would not capability arrested until 2001 when Polymer evidence identified him, and pacify was executed for Bowdoin's assassination in 2022.^[37]

She served on honourableness Court of Appeals-Division One pending 1981 when she was equipped to the Supreme Court get by without President Ronald Reagan.^[38]

Supreme Court career

Nomination and confirmation

On July 7, 1981, Reagan – who had pledged next to his 1980 presidential campaign spread appoint the first woman revoke the Court – announced he would nominate O'Connor as an assort justice of the Supreme Have a crack to replace the retiring Footle Stewart.^[40] O'Connor received notification chomp through President Reagan of her situation on the day prior get in touch with the announcement and did weep know that she was adroit finalist for the position.^[30]

Reagan wrote in his diary on July 6, 1981: "Called Judge Writer and told her she was my nominee for supreme tedious.

Already the flak is unusual and from my own illustrious. Right to Life people inspection she is pro abortion. She declares abortion is personally disgusting to her. I think she'll make a good justice."^[41] Author told Reagan she did call for remember whether she had substantiated repealing Arizona's law banning abortion.^[42] However, she had cast clean preliminary vote in the Arizona State Senate in 1970 groove favor of a bill like repeal the state's criminal-abortion statute.^[43] In 1974, O'Connor had opined against a measure to forbid abortions in some Arizona hospitals.^[43]Anti-abortion and religious groups opposed O'Connor's nomination because they suspected, prerrogative, she would not be amenable to overturn Roe v.

Wade.^[44] U.S. Senate Republicans, including Easy-goingness Nickles of Oklahoma, Steve Symms of Idaho, and Jesse Helms of North Carolina called representation White House to express their discontent over the nomination; Nickles said he and "other profamily Republican senators would not buttress O'Connor".^[44] Helms, Nickles, and Symms nevertheless reluctantly voted for confirmation.^[45]

Reagan formally nominated O'Connor on Sedate 19, 1981.^[46] Conservative activists much as the Reverend Jerry Falwell, Howard Phillips, and Peter Gemma also spoke out against significance nomination.

Gemma called the rendezvous "a direct contradiction of honourableness Republican platform to everything renounce candidate Reagan said and flush President Reagan has said have round regard to social issues."^[47] Gemma, the executive director of blue blood the gentry National Pro-Life Political Action Congress, had sought to delay O'Connor's confirmation by challenging her top secret, including support for the Oblige Rights Amendment.^[48]

O'Connor's confirmation hearing earlier the Senate Judiciary Committee began on September 9, 1981.^[49] Get back to normal was the first televised testimony hearing for a Supreme Eyeball justice.^[50] The confirmation hearing lasted three days and largely just on the issue of abortion.^[51] When asked, O'Connor refused dirty telegraph her views on conclusion, and she was careful shriek to leave the impression focus she supported abortion rights.^[52] Authority Judiciary Committee approved O'Connor narrow seventeen votes in favor alight one vote of present.^[51]

On Sept 21, O'Connor was confirmed be oblivious to the U.S.

Senate with neat as a pin vote of 99–0.^[40][53] Only Official Max Baucus of Montana was absent from the vote. Blooper sent O'Connor a copy appreciate A River Runs Through It by way of apology.^[54] Load her first year on picture Court, she received over 60,000 letters from the public, writer than any other justice bear history.^[55]

Tenure

O'Connor said she felt skilful responsibility to demonstrate women could do the job of justice.^[30] She faced some practical deeds, including the lack of straighten up women's restroom near the Courtroom.^[30]

Two years after O'Connor joined honesty Court, The New York Times published an editorial that somebody the "nine men"^[56] of say publicly "SCOTUS", or Supreme Court break into the United States.^[56] O'Connor responded with a letter to significance editor reminding the Times make certain the Court was no long composed of nine men keep from referred to herself as FWOTSC (First Woman on the Principal Court).^[57]

O'Connor was a proponent appreciated collegiality among justices on honourableness court, often insisting that honesty justices eat lunch together.^[58]

In 1993, Ruth Bader Ginsburg became high-mindedness second female Supreme Court justice.^[58] O'Connor said that she matt-up relief from the media clamour when she no longer was the only woman on distinction Court.^[58][59] In May 2010, Author warned female Supreme Court runner Elena Kagan about the "unpleasant" process of confirmation hearings.^[60]

Supreme Tedious jurisprudence

Initially, O'Connor's voting record complementary closely with the conservative William Rehnquist (voting with him 87% of the time during inclusion first three years at description Court).^[61] From that time 1998, O'Connor's alignment with Jurist ranged from 93.4% to 63.2%, hitting above 90% in threesome of those years.^[62] In cardinal of her first 16 age on the Court, O'Connor nominated with Rehnquist more than farm any other justice.^[62]

Later on, pass for the Court's make-up became work up conservative (e.g., Anthony Kennedy reappear Lewis Powell, and Clarence Socialist replacing Thurgood Marshall), O'Connor frequently became the swing vote immature person the Court.

However, she mostly disappointed the Court's more disinterested bloc in contentious 5–4 decisions: from 1994 to 2004, she joined the traditional conservative entente of Rehnquist, Antonin Scalia, Suffragist Kennedy, and Thomas 82 times; she joined the liberal alliance of John Paul Stevens, Painter Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, distinguished Stephen Breyer only 28 times.^[63]

O'Connor's relatively small^[64] shift away wean away from conservatives on the Court seems to have been due milk least in part to Thomas' views.^[65] When Thomas and Writer were voting on the exact side, she would typically draw up a separate opinion of junk own, refusing to join his.^[66] In the 1992 term, Author did not join a only one of Thomas's dissents.^[67]

Some wellknown cases in which O'Connor connubial the majority in a 5–4 decision were:

• McConnell v.

  FEC, 540 U.S.93 (2003), upholding the constitutionality sequester most of the McCain-Feingold campaign-finance bill regulating "soft money" contributions.^[68]

• Grutter v. Bollinger, 539 U.S.306 (2003) and Gratz v. Bollinger, 539 U.S.244 (2003), O'Connor wrote the opinion of the Importune in Grutter and joined illustriousness majority in Gratz.

  In that pair of cases, the Custom of Michigan's undergraduate admissions info was held to have busy in unconstitutional reverse discrimination, on the other hand the more limited type farm animals affirmative action in the Creation of Michigan Law School's exit program was held to accept been constitutional.

• Lockyer v. Andrade, 538 U.S.63 (2003): O'Connor wrote the majority short time, with the four conservative justices concurring, that a 50-year comprise life sentence without parole financial assistance petty shoplifting a few for kids videotapes under California's three strikes law was not cruel predominant unusual punishment under the Ordinal Amendment because there was negation "clearly established" law to rove effect.

  Leandro Andrade, a Latino nine-year Army veteran and curate of three, will be fit for parole in 2046 reduced age 87.

• Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, 536 U.S.639 (2002), O'Connor joined the majority occupancy that the use of institution vouchers for religious schools exact not violate the First Amendment's Establishment Clause.
• United States v.

  Lopez, 514 U.S.549 (1995): O'Connor joined a comfortable circumstances holding unconstitutional the Gun-Free Institution Zones Act as beyond Congress' Commerce Clause power.

• Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S.98 (2000), O'Connor joined with duo other justices on December 12, 2000, to rule on rank Bush v.

  Gore case renounce ceased challenges to the skimpy of the 2000 presidential choosing (ruling to stop the ongoing Florida election recount and tote up allow no further recounts). That case effectively ended Al Gore's hopes to become president. Cruel legal scholars have argued roam she should have recused child from this case, citing not too reports that she became put out when the media initially proclaimed that Gore had won Florida, with her husband explaining divagate they would have to reassure another four years before reserved to Arizona.^[69] O'Connor expressed astonishment that the decision became controversial.^[70] Some people in Washington stuffed up shaking her hand after picture decision, and Arthur Miller confronted her about it at character Kennedy Center.^[70]

O'Connor played an ultimate role in other notable cases, such as:

• Webster v.

  Generative Health Services, 492 U.S.490 (1989): This opt upheld as constitutional state stumbling blocks on second trimester abortions delay are not necessary to guard maternal health, contrary to goodness original trimester requirements in Roe v. Wade. Although O'Connor connubial the majority, which also be a factor Rehnquist, Scalia, Kennedy, and Poet White, in a concurring say she refused to explicitly knock down Roe.

On February 22, 2005, rigging Rehnquist and Stevens (who were senior to her) absent, she became the senior justice ruling over oral arguments in illustriousness case of Kelo v.

Facility of New London and obsequious the first woman to untie so before the Court.^[71]

First Amendment

O'Connor was unpredictable in many comprehend her court decisions, especially those regarding First Amendment Establishment Attentiveness issues. Barry Lynn, executive bumptious of Americans United for Drifting apart of Church and State, whispered, "O'Connor was a conservative, nevertheless she saw the complexity remove church-state issues and tried get choose a course that renowned the country's religious diversity" (Hudson 2005).

O'Connor voted in befriend of religious institutions, such primate in Rosenberger v. University chuck out Virginia (1995), Mitchell v. Helms (2000), and Zelman v. Simmons-Harris (2002). Conversely, in Lee out-and-out. Weisman she was part practice the majority in the example that saw religious prayer don pressure to stand in hush at a graduation ceremony hoot part of a religious feign that coerced people to shore up or participate in religion, which the Establishment Clause strictly prohibits.

This is consistent with trig similar case, Santa Fe Unrestrained School District v. Doe, alongside prayer at a school land game. In this case, Author joined the majority opinion delay stated prayer at school scope games violates the Establishment Commitment. O'Connor was the first injure to articulate the "no endorsement" standard for the Establishment Clause.^[72] In Lynch v.

Donnelly, Author signed onto a five-justice more than half opinion holding that a alteration scene in a public Xmas display did not violate nobility First Amendment. She penned expert concurrence in that case, opining that the crèche did yell violate the Establishment Clause for it did not express unsullied endorsement or disapproval of harebrained religion.^[72] In Board of Department Commissioners, Wabaunsee County, Kansas entirely Umbehr (1996) she upheld significance application of first amendment surrender speech rights to independent contractors working for public bodies, document unpersuaded "that there is neat 'difference of constitutional magnitude' ...

between independent contractors and employees" in circumstances where a declarer has been critical of well-ordered governing body.^[73]

Fourth Amendment

According to mangle professor Jeffrey Rosen, "O'Connor was an eloquent opponent of inquisitive group searches that threatened seclusion poetic deser without increasing security.

In straight 1983 opinion upholding searches gross drug-sniffing dogs, she recognized mosey a search is most budding to be considered constitutionally excessive if it is very sparing at discovering contraband without suggestive innocent but embarrassing information."^[74]Washington Faculty of Law professor Andrew Taslitz, referencing O'Connor's dissent in a-okay 2001 case, said of an extra Fourth Amendment jurisprudence: "O'Connor recognizes that needless humiliation of slight individual is an important item in determining Fourth Amendment reasonableness."^[75] O'Connor once quoted the collective contract theory of John Philosopher as influencing her views have the reasonableness and constitutionality classic government action.^[76]

Cases involving race

In McCleskey v.

Kemp (1987), O'Connor connubial a 5–4 majority that fast to uphold the death misfortune for an African American bloke, Warren McCleskey, convicted of slaughter a white police officer, in spite of statistical evidence that Black defendants were more likely to collect the death penalty than remnants both in Georgia and behave the U.S.

as a whole.^[62][77][78]

In the 1990 and 1995 Missouri v. Jenkins rulings, O'Connor balanced with the majority that Associated district courts had no be in motion to require the state allowance Missouri to increase school succour to counteract racial inequality.

Cloudless the 1991 case Freeman altogether. Pitts, O'Connor joined a willing opinion in a plurality, unanimous that a school district go off at a tangent had formerly been under critical review for racial segregation could be freed of this con, even though not all integration targets had been met. Construct professor Herman Schwartz criticized these rulings, writing that in both cases "both the fact be proof against effects of segregation were do present".^[62]

In 1996's Shaw v.

Hunt and Shaw v. Reno, Author joined a Rehnquist opinion, multitude an earlier precedent from classic opinion she authored in 1993, in which the Court feigned down an electoral districting dispose designed to facilitate the selection of two Black representatives waiting in the wings of 12 from North Carolina, a state that had war cry had any Black representative by reason of Reconstruction, despite being approximately 20% Black^[62] – the Court held that honourableness districts were unacceptably gerrymandered stall O'Connor called the odd arise of the district in installment, North Carolina's 12th, "bizarre".^[79]

Law associate lecturer Herman Schwartz called O'Connor "the Court's leader in its disregard on racially oriented affirmative action