In 1996 when son Byron was twelve years old, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor gave him a tour of the U.S. Supreme Court building. He had first visited her there when he was three months old, but of course had no recollection of that. This encounter, on the other hand, was one he will always remember. We started in her chambers, then made our way through the Great Hall to see the courtroom at the other end. We entered through its big oak doors. It was so impressive, the nine empty chairs straight ahead of us. Justice O’Connor explained where everyone sat based on their seniority, the chief justice always in the middle. After answering all of Byron’s questions Justice O’Connor had a surprise for him. She said, “This is not the highest court in the land.” Byron was perplexed. She put her arm around Byron and guided us up a few flights of stairs to the fifth floor. We walked into a gym, and she pointed to a basketball court. “This is the highest court in the land!” Byron burst out laughing, the justice was highly pleased with his reaction, and that memorable moment is cherished.
I stayed in touch with Justice O’Connor over her years on the Court, and in 2001 made one of my top ten photos thanks to her. She told me she was going with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman on the Court, to attend a meeting of the Women’s Congressional Caucus at the U.S. Capitol, would I like to come? The result was a classic moment. The first two women Supreme Court Justices seated in Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol surrounded by statues of white men. The irony was not lost on me or them. How things had changed!
Flash forward 27 years. I was back in the Great Hall under somber circumstances. I photographed the nine current justices of the U.S. Supreme Court as they stood behind the casket of their late colleague Sandra Day O’Connor. I mourned the loss of an old friend and the civility she represented during her time on the Court.
As I looked down that line of solemn faces, five of them stood out. Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Comey Barrett, the ones who recently overturned Roe v. Wade. Sandra Day O’Connor would not have been one of them.
During her time on the Court she had twice helped form the majority that upheld and reaffirmed a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion. Thirty years later, the man who replaced her, Samuel Alito, authored the opinion and spearheaded the effort that overturned Roe. She would have been aghast.
None of the nine in that line were on the Court when O’Connor joined on September 25, 1981 making history as the first woman to become a member of that body. She replaced Justice Potter Stewart who had been there since 1958. Her other colleagues at the time were Chief Justice Warren Burger, Justices Harry Blackmun, Thurgood Marshall, William Brennan, Byron White, Lewis F. Powell, Jr., William Rehnquist and John Paul Stevens. An all-star class of jurists.
I was there that day at the Supreme Court, and the next at the Washington National Cathedral, at the request of her three sons, Scott, Brian, and Jay. I documented the celebration of a great American, one who changed the course of our country, for them in memory of their mom.
At the National Cathedral President Biden’s hand touched O’Connor’s casket as he walked by on his way to deliver a eulogy. I caught the brief but meaningful moment.
The president talked about being the ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee that approved her nomination. He said, “. . . her trust in the capacity of human institutions to make life better is what this world was abiding. And how she embodied such attributes under such pressure and scrutiny helped empower generations of women in every part of American life, including the Court itself, helping to open doors, secure freedoms, and prove that a woman can not only do anything a man can do but, many times, do it a hell of a lot — a heck of a lot better. Excuse my language, Father.” That got a laugh, especially from her kids.
Chief Justice Roberts said, “The time when women were not on the bench seem so far away because Justice O'Connor was so good when she was on the bench.” In a humorous aside he observed that the Supreme Court is like a family, “a family composed entirely of in-laws.” Justice O’Connor would have agreed with that.
Her son Jay quoted a letter from her mom to them, “Our purpose in life is to help others along the way. May you each try to do the same. What a beautiful, powerful and totally Sandra Day O'Connor sentiment. And it is so clear to Scott, Brian and me that she lived her own life in complete accord with this.”
On July 7, 1981, President Reagan fulfilled a campaign promise to nominate a woman to the high court. In selecting O’Connor, a 51-year-old judge from Arizona, he said, “She is truly a person for all seasons, possessing those unique qualities of temperament, fairness, intellectual capacity, and devotion to the public good which have characterized the 101 brethren who have preceded her.”
Right after President Reagan made his stunning announcement I got a call from Time Magazine to get myself out to Phoenix and get some pictures of her.
I had no idea where she lived exactly, (it was Scottsdale, AZ), or how to get in touch, (I got her home phone number the old-fashioned way, from information). To my surprise she answered. I introduced myself, told her I was asked by Time to photograph her, and she said, “Come on over.”
That was the beginning of a relationship with one of the most delightful and empathetic people I have ever known.
When I arrived at the O’Connor home, I was offered something to drink, lunch, and yes, the opportunity to photograph Judge O’Connor. She even threw in her husband John, also a lawyer, and their three sons, Scott, Brian and Jay for good measure. She said, “They are the best part of me.”
They were still in a state of shock over the announcement. John O’Connor, who was an incredibly funny guy, said that he wasn’t sure how he would handle being the spouse of a famous wife, but that he was looking forward to giving it a shot.
I took pictures of the judge in her judicial robe holding the family bible outside their home with a cactus as a backdrop. It seemed fitting for this woman who was of the west and particularly Arizona. After a few shots outside with the family, then of her and John in their kitchen, I bid them adieu.
I photographed her again a week later when she met with President Reagan in the Rose Garden at the White House. As two westerners they were very comfortable with one another, and he was clearly delighted by his choice.
Two months later, and the day before the beginning of her Senate hearings, the O’Connors came to my Georgetown home for dinner. I had invited some photographer friends, telling her she was going to have to get used to them, so might as well start now. (They loved her, and she them). Another guest was ABC White House correspondent Sam Donaldson. Sam had gone to grade school with O’Connor at the Radford School for Girls in El Paso, Texas. He was the only boy attending the place at that time, and the two had a great time talking about it. At the end of the evening everyone left but the O’Connors. She and John helped me do the dishes.
The next day she was sworn in before testifying to the Senate Judiciary Committee. It was the first televised hearing for a Supreme Court nominee.
In her opening statement, Judge O’Connor said, "the proper role of the judiciary is one of interpreting and applying the law, not making it." Pass it along.
During the three days of hearings, Democrat Senator Ted Kennedy said, "I think that you have seen both the worst of this city and the best of it. The worst being the target of some of the single-issue constituencies who are going to urge your defeat, and the best in the fact that you have had the strong and unyielding support of a President of the United States, and strong bipartisan support from members of the U.S. Senate who have been unflinching in support of your candidacy. As a matter of fact, I have finally found an issue on which I can agree with Senator Goldwater!"
Along those lines, Jerry Falwell of the Moral Majority said that every good Christian should be concerned about the nomination of Sandra Day O’Connor. Arizona’s cantankerous Senator Barry Goldwater, an avid O’Connor supporter, replied that, “Every good Christian should kick Falwell right in the ass.”
O’Connor was confirmed by the full Senate 99 to 0. Sen. Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana, was out of town and did not vote, but most likely would have made it 100 to none.
I stayed in touch with Justice O’Connor over her years on the Court, and in 2001 made one of my top ten photos thanks to her. She told me she was going with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman on the Court, to attend a meeting of the Women’s Congressional Caucus at the U.S. Capitol, would I like to come? The result was a classic moment. The first two women Supreme Court Justices seated in Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol surrounded by statues of white men. The irony was not lost on me or them. How things had changed!
In 2005 Justice O’Connor announced she would be leaving the Court to look after her husband who was suffering from Alzheimer’s. President George W. Bush nominated Judge John Roberts to succeed her. Right before that happened Chief Justice William Rehnquist died, and Bush nominated Roberts to be Chief Justice.
Rehnquist and O’Connor were very close, had attended Stanford Law School together, and he had even asked her to marry him. She declined in favor of another Stanford student, John O’Connor.
The two remained close friends, however, and she was devastated by his death. I photographed Judge Roberts who had clerked for Rehnquist and was a pallbearer as he passed by her during the ceremony honoring the Chief Justice.
I made another shot of the eight justices as they descended the steps of the court to attend his funeral.
Justice O’Connor stayed on the Court until her replacement Alito was in place.
Four years later, on November 11, 2009, John died from complications from Alzheimer’s.
Justice O’Connor was later afflicted by the same problem. The last time I saw her was at a rest home in Phoenix. She still remembered me, and we had a good chat, but it was clear the great lady was fading away. The best laugh we had was about her and John doing the dishes at my house after the dinner party for them in 1981. “That was such a great evening,” she fondly recalled.
On October 23, 2018 Justice O’Connor wrote a letter saying that she was withdrawing from public life because of her condition. It said in part, "While the final chapter of my life with dementia may be trying, nothing has diminished my gratitude and deep appreciation for the countless blessings in my life."
Sandra Day O’Connor was a blessing in mine.
