WATCH LIVE: The public pays respects to former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor
O'Connor, the first woman to sit on the Supreme Court, left an enduring legacy.
Former Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor is lying in repose Monday at the Supreme Court so the public can pay their respects ahead of a funeral service tomorrow at the Washington National Cathedral.
The Supreme Court first held a private ceremony at 9:30 a.m. ET with Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Rev. Jane Fahey – who once clerked for Justice O’Connor – as speakers. O’Connor is now viewable from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. inside the building’s Great Hall.
O’Connor, who was the first woman to sit on the Supreme Court, died in Phoenix on Dec. 1 at the age of 93. The Court said O’Connor passed due to "complications related to advanced dementia, probably Alzheimer’s, and a respiratory illness."
O'Connor is remembered as a history-making woman, a pragmatic conservative, a keen legal mind and a beloved mother and grandmother.
SANDRA DAY O’CONNOR, FORMER SURPREME COURT JUSTICE, DEAD AT 93
Supreme Court Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor poses for a photo in 1982. O'Connor, who joined the Supreme Court in 1981 as the nation's first female justice, died on Dec. 1 at age 93. (AP Photo)
She was appointed to the Court in 1981 by former President Reagan. O'Connor stepped down in 2006 from the bench, but she remained an active and public voice for a variety of causes, including judicial independence and civics education.
In 2018, the then 88-year-old revealed in a letter released to the public that she was in the early stages of dementia.
REAGAN HISTORIAN LOOKS BACK AT O’CONNOR APPOINTMENT
The late Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor lies in repose at the Supreme Court building on Monday, Dec. 18. (Fox News)
Following her death, current Supreme Court Justices hailed O’Connor as being a trailblazer, an "American hero" and "hugely influential."
Vice President Kamala Harris pays tribute Monday to former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. (Bill Mears/Fox News)
"A daughter of the American Southwest, Sandra Day O’Connor blazed an historic trail as our Nation’s first female Justice. She met that challenge with undaunted determination, indisputable ability, and engaging candor," Chief Justice John Roberts, Jr. said in a statement.
Sandra Day O'Connor is shown before administering the oath of office to members of the Texas Supreme Court, Jan. 6, 2003, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
"I mourn the passing of another American hero. When Sandra Day O’Connor, the 'cowgirl from out west,' became the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court, she changed the world and made history," Justice Sonia Sotomayor added. "Indeed, her entire life was pathbreaking. She served in all three branches of government, was a brilliant champion of women’s rights, and promoted civic education in a way that transformed how children learn about our shared responsibility as citizens."
Fox News' Bill Mears, Shannon Bream and Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
More from Politics
