Sandra Day O’Connor was a towering Arizona figure, even before she was appointed as the first female Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. From her formative days on the Lazy B Ranch in southeastern Arizona to her time at Stanford University to her relentless public service at the state and national levels, Justice O’Connor was a leader among her peers, a legacy that will live on through her institute dedicated to promoting the ideals of civil discourse and civics education.
1978 Bench Photo from the Superior Court of Maricopa County
In Arizona, she has the distinction of serving in each branch of government. After working in private practice for a number of years in Phoenix, she became an assistant attorney general at the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. In 1969 she was appointed to a vacancy in the Arizona Senate; she won election to the seat in 1972 and was named as majority leader, the first woman to hold such a role in any state’s upper legislative chamber. In 1974, Justice O’Connor left the legislature to pursue her career as a jurist, first at the Superior Court in Maricopa County (1975-1979) and then as a judge on the Arizona Court of Appeals (1979-1981). Justice O’Connor was a founder of both the Arizona Women Lawyers Association and the National Association of Women Judges. She was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1981 where she served until retirement in 2006. When nominated by President Reagan, she was the first person appointed to the nation’s court in 24 years who had state court experience and the first justice in 32 years with lawmaking experience.
Her impact is still felt today.
Beyond her “firsts,” Justice O’Connor was a dedicated public servant and professional who pursued the Rule of Law for all and the fairness and impartiality of the Judicial Branch. She was known for her pragmatism and dispassionate approach to difficult issues, the hallmark of her career as a jurist. Today, her legacy lives large for the more than 160 judicial officers and 3,000 employees of the Judicial Branch in Maricopa County. All our thoughts and prayers are with her family.
Hon. Joseph C. Welty
Presiding Judge of the Judicial Branch in Maricopa County