Washington, DC, U.S. - FILE PHOTO - Retired Justice SANDRA DAY O CONNOR revealed in a letter on Tuesday that she has been diagnosed with the beginning stages of dementia, probably Alzheimer s disease. PICTURED: Dec 01, 1981 - Washington, DC, USA; (Exact Date unknown) SANDRA DAY O CONNER (born March 26, 1930) has been an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1981. Although Mildred Lillie was the first woman nominated to the bench, O Connor was the first woman to be confirmed and to serve on the Court. Due to her case-by-case approach to jurisprudence and her relatively moderate political views, she was the crucial swing vote of the Court for many of her final years on the bench. In 2004, Forbes Magazine called her the fourth most powerful woman in the United States and the sixth most powerfu - ZUMAe04_ 19811201_rua_e04_331

October 23, 2018 - Washington, DC, U.S. - FILE PHOTO - Retired Justice SANDRA DAY O CONNOR revealed in a letter on Tuesday that she has been diagnosed with the beginning stages of dementia, probably Alzheimer s disease. PICTURED: Dec 01, 1981 - Washington, DC, USA; (Exact Date unknown) SANDRA DAY O CONNER (born March 26, 1930) has been an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1981. Although Mildred Lillie was the first woman nominated to the bench, O Connor was the first woman to be confirmed and to serve on the Court. Due to her case-by-case approach to jurisprudence and her relatively moderate political views, she was the crucial swing vote of the Court for many of her final years on the bench. In 2004, Forbes Magazine called her the fourth most powerful woman in the United States and the sixth most powerfu - ZUMAe04_ 19811201_rua_e04_331