Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connoris a retired associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, serving from her appointment in 1981 by Ronald Reagan until her retirement in 2006. She was the first woman to be appointed to the Court...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionSupreme Court Justice
Date of Birth26 March 1930
CityEl Paso, TX
CountryUnited States of America
Sandra Day O'Connor quotes about
party taken government
Any property may now be taken for the benefit of another private party, but the fallout from this decision will not be random. The beneficiaries are likely to be those citizens with disproportionate influence and power in the political process, including large corporations and development firms. As for the victims, the government now has license to transfer property from those with fewer resources to those with more. The Founders cannot have intended this perverse result.
taken risk may
We hold that the reckless disregard for human life implicit in knowingly engaging in criminal activity known to carry a grave risk of death represents a highly culpable mental state that may be taken into account in making a capital sentencing judgment not inevitable, lethal result.
The fact is, we are a nine-member court that sits on cases.
knew
Well, it's a little odd, the path I took, because when I was young, I wanted to be a cattle rancher. That was what I knew and that was what I liked.
court depends exert power
The power I exert on the court depends on the power of my arguments, not on my gender.
court fair helps people terms women
In terms of having the American people look at the court and think of it as being fair and appropriate for our nation, it helps to have women, plural, on the court.
legal reach
I've always said that at the end of the day, on a legal issue, I think a wise old woman and a wise old man are going to reach the same conclusion.
As a citizen, you need to know how to be a part of it, how to express yourself - and not just by voting.
jobs moving justice
My concern was whether I could do the job of a justice well enough to convince the nation that my appointment was the right move.
may statistics death-penalty
If statistics are any indication, the system may well be allowing some innocent defendants to be executed.
persistence reality government
The unhappy persistence of both the practice and the lingering effects of racial discrimination ...is an unfortunate reality...and the government is not disqualified from acting in response to it.
years use today
We expect that 25 years from now, the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary to further the interest approved today.
unique government understanding
For students, understanding the separate and unique functions of each branch of government can help them understand how different kinds of government officials can help solve different kinds of problems.
doubt liberty jurisprudence
Liberty finds no refuge in a jurisprudence of doubt.