Mourners gathered on Tuesday to remember the life of Sandra Day O’Connor following herdeath on Dec. 1at the age of 93.
O’Connor, appointed as the nation’s first femaleSupreme Courtjustice in 1981, died in Phoenix, Arizona. The court announced her death in a statement, citing “complications related to advanced dementia, probably Alzheimer’s, and a respiratory illness.”
A memorial service for O’Connor was held Tuesday morning at Washington National Cathedral, where PresidentJoe Bidenand Chief JusticeJohn Robertswere invited to speak. The service came one day after O’Connor lay in repose in the Supreme Court’s Great Hall.
01of 10O’Connor’s Sons Await the Arrival of Her CasketScott O’Connor, Jay O’Connor, and Brian O’Connor, sons of the late retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, await the arrival of her casket at the Supreme Court where she will lie in repose December 18, 2023.Alex Brandon-Pool/GettyO’Connor’s three sons — Scott O’Connor, Jay O’Connor and Brian O’Connor — await the arrival of their mother’s casket ahead of Monday’s private ceremony, where she would lie in repose at the Supreme Court’s Great Hall.
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O’Connor’s Sons Await the Arrival of Her Casket
Scott O’Connor, Jay O’Connor, and Brian O’Connor, sons of the late retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, await the arrival of her casket at the Supreme Court where she will lie in repose December 18, 2023.Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty
Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty
O’Connor’s three sons — Scott O’Connor, Jay O’Connor and Brian O’Connor — await the arrival of their mother’s casket ahead of Monday’s private ceremony, where she would lie in repose at the Supreme Court’s Great Hall.
02of 10A Grand Welcome from Her Law ClerksPallbearers carry the casket of late Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023.Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via GettyO’Connor’s former law clerks line the path up the steps of the Supreme Court as pallbearers carry the former justice’s casket inside.
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A Grand Welcome from Her Law Clerks
Pallbearers carry the casket of late Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023.Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty
Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty
O’Connor’s former law clerks line the path up the steps of the Supreme Court as pallbearers carry the former justice’s casket inside.
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Current SCOTUS Justices Remember O’Connor
From left, Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts, Justice Clarence Thomas, Justice Samuel Alito, Justice Sonia Sotomayor Justice Elena Kagan, Justice Neil Gorsuch, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson and retired Justice Anthony Kennedy, stand in front flag-draped casket of retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor during a private service in the Great Hall at the Supreme Court in Washington, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023.AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin
AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin
04of 10Fellow Pioneer Kamala Harris Pays Her RespectsUS Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff walk past a portrait of late Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor as they pay their respects in the Great Hall of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023.Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via GettyVice PresidentKamala Harrisand her husband, second gentlemanDoug Emhoff, walk past a portrait of O’Connor as they pay their respects in the Supreme Court’s Great Hall on Monday.O’Connor was once hailed as the “most powerful woman in the world,” a descriptor later bestowed upon Harris when she was sworn in as the nation’s first female vice president.
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Fellow Pioneer Kamala Harris Pays Her Respects
US Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff walk past a portrait of late Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor as they pay their respects in the Great Hall of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023.Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty
Vice PresidentKamala Harrisand her husband, second gentlemanDoug Emhoff, walk past a portrait of O’Connor as they pay their respects in the Supreme Court’s Great Hall on Monday.
O’Connor was once hailed as the “most powerful woman in the world,” a descriptor later bestowed upon Harris when she was sworn in as the nation’s first female vice president.
05of 10O’Connor’s Casket Arrives at the National CathedralThe remains of former US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor arrive at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC, on December 19, 2023, for her funeral service.OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via GettyThe flag-draped casket carrying O’Connor arrives at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., for her funeral service on Tuesday.In October 2018, O’Connor’s familyreleased a letterfrom the 24-year Supreme Court veteran announcing that she had dementia and was “no longer able to participate in public life.““How fortunate I feel to be an American and to have been presented with the remarkable opportunities available to the citizens of our country,” she wrote. “As a young cowgirl from the Arizona desert, I never could have imagined that one day I would become the first woman justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.”
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O’Connor’s Casket Arrives at the National Cathedral
The remains of former US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor arrive at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC, on December 19, 2023, for her funeral service.OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty
OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty
The flag-draped casket carrying O’Connor arrives at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., for her funeral service on Tuesday.
In October 2018, O’Connor’s familyreleased a letterfrom the 24-year Supreme Court veteran announcing that she had dementia and was “no longer able to participate in public life.”
“How fortunate I feel to be an American and to have been presented with the remarkable opportunities available to the citizens of our country,” she wrote. “As a young cowgirl from the Arizona desert, I never could have imagined that one day I would become the first woman justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.”
06of 10Members of Congress Attend the Memorial ServiceU.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai (L) and U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (2nd L) (D-MN) arrive for the memorial service for late retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor at the National Cathedral on December 19, 2023 in Washington, DC.Jim Watson-Pool/GettyMembers of Congress, including Minnesota Sen.Amy Klobuchar, as well as other notable political figures, such as U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, are on hand for Tuesday’s memorial service.
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Members of Congress Attend the Memorial Service
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai (L) and U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (2nd L) (D-MN) arrive for the memorial service for late retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor at the National Cathedral on December 19, 2023 in Washington, DC.Jim Watson-Pool/Getty
Jim Watson-Pool/Getty
Members of Congress, including Minnesota Sen.Amy Klobuchar, as well as other notable political figures, such as U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, are on hand for Tuesday’s memorial service.
07of 10POTUS Honors an American LegendU.S. President Joe Biden attends the memorial service for late retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor at the National Cathedral on December 19, 2023 in Washington, DC.Jim Watson-Pool/GettyJoe Biden appears at a private, invitation-only memorial for O’Connor.In a statement released after her passing was announced, Biden said of O’Connor: “She gave her life to public service, even holding elected office, and never forgot those ties to the people whom the law is meant to serve. She sought to avoid ideology, and was devoted to the rule of law and to the bedrock American principle of an independent judiciary.”
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POTUS Honors an American Legend
U.S. President Joe Biden attends the memorial service for late retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor at the National Cathedral on December 19, 2023 in Washington, DC.Jim Watson-Pool/Getty
Joe Biden appears at a private, invitation-only memorial for O’Connor.
In a statement released after her passing was announced, Biden said of O’Connor: “She gave her life to public service, even holding elected office, and never forgot those ties to the people whom the law is meant to serve. She sought to avoid ideology, and was devoted to the rule of law and to the bedrock American principle of an independent judiciary.”
08of 10Clarence Thomas and Other Justices Sit in the CrowdAssociate Justice Clarence Thomas, right, and his wife Virginia Thomas, attend a memorial service for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, at the National Cathedral in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023.AP Photo/Susan WalshJustice Clarence Thomas (seen here with his wife,Ginni) puts a hand on his head during the memorial service for his former colleague. O’Connor joined the court a decade before Thomas, now 75, and the two shared the bench for 15 years.
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Clarence Thomas and Other Justices Sit in the Crowd
Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, right, and his wife Virginia Thomas, attend a memorial service for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, at the National Cathedral in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023.AP Photo/Susan Walsh
AP Photo/Susan Walsh
Justice Clarence Thomas (seen here with his wife,Ginni) puts a hand on his head during the memorial service for his former colleague. O’Connor joined the court a decade before Thomas, now 75, and the two shared the bench for 15 years.
09of 10Biden Delivers Remarks at O’Connors FuneralUS President Joe Biden speaks at the funeral service of late US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day OConnor at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023.Ting Shen/Bloomberg via GettyCalling her an ”American pioneer,” Biden delivers remarks about O’Connor, calling her “gracious and wise, civil and principled.“Elsewhere in his remarks, Biden recounted how, “more than 40 years ago, on a Wednesday in September 1981, the Senate Judiciary Committee came to order. I was the ranking member of that committee. The day’s business was momentous: the nomination of Sandra Day O’Connor to become the first woman in American history to serve as a Supreme Court Justice on the United States Supreme Court.”
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Biden Delivers Remarks at O’Connors Funeral
US President Joe Biden speaks at the funeral service of late US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day OConnor at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023.Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty
Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty
Calling her an ”American pioneer,” Biden delivers remarks about O’Connor, calling her “gracious and wise, civil and principled.”
Elsewhere in his remarks, Biden recounted how, “more than 40 years ago, on a Wednesday in September 1981, the Senate Judiciary Committee came to order. I was the ranking member of that committee. The day’s business was momentous: the nomination of Sandra Day O’Connor to become the first woman in American history to serve as a Supreme Court Justice on the United States Supreme Court.”
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The family of late retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor attend her funeral service at the National Cathedral on December 19, 2023 in Washington, DC.Jim Watson-Pool/Getty
O’Connor’s surviving family members shed tears during her memorial. The justice served on the Supreme Court for 25 years before retiring in 2006 to care for her husband, John, who wasdiagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
source: people.com
