Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter dies at 85
Source: CNBC
Published Fri, May 9 2025 9:10 AM EDT Updated An Hour Ago
Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter died Thursday at his home in New Hampshire, the court said in a statement. He was 85 years old. Souter, who was appointed to the high court in 1990 by his fellow Republican, President George H.W. Bush, and retired in 2009.
Souter, while serving on the court, often vexed Bush and other Republicans by aligning himself with liberal justices in decisions on cases.
One such notable decision was in 1992′s Planned Parenthood v. Casey, in which he joined with the majority in upholding the federal constitutional right to abortion first established by the case known as Roe v. Wade. The Supreme Court, in its 2022 decision in Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, undid that right to abortion.
In 2000, Souter dissented with liberal justices on the case Bush v. Gore, which halted the presidential election vote recount in Florida, guaranteeing that Bush’s son, George W. Bush, would win that contest. Souter’s retirement at a relatively young age allowed a new, Democratic president, Barack Obama, to appoint a liberal justice to replace him: Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/05/09/supreme-court-david-souter-dies.html
Just breaking.
SCOTUS PRESS RELEASE - https://www.supremecourt.gov/publicinfo/press/pressreleases/pr_05-09-25
For Further Information Contact:
May 9, 2025
Patricia McCabe (202) 479-3211
Retired Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, David H. Souter, died peacefully yesterday at home in New Hampshire. He was 85 years old. Justice Souter was appointed to the Court by President George H.W. Bush in 1990, and retired in 2009, after serving more than 19 years on the Court.
Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. said of Justice Souter: "Justice David Souter served our Court with great distinction for nearly twenty years. He brought uncommon wisdom and kindness to a lifetime of public service. After retiring to his beloved New Hampshire in 2009, he continued to render significant service to our branch by sitting regularly on the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit for more than a decade. He will be greatly missed."
Justice Souter was born in Melrose, Massachusetts, on September 17, 1939. He graduated from Harvard College, from which he received his A.B. After two years as a Rhodes Scholar at Magdalen College, Oxford, he received an A.B. in Jurisprudence from Oxford University and an M.A. in 1963. After receiving an LL.B. from Harvard Law School, he was an associate at Orr and Reno in Concord, New Hampshire, from 1966 to 1968, when he became an Assistant Attorney General of New Hampshire. In 1971, he became Deputy Attorney General and in 1976, Attorney General of New Hampshire. In 1978, he was named an Associate Justice of the Superior Court of New Hampshire, and was appointed to the Supreme Court of New Hampshire as an Associate Justice in 1983. He became a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on May 25, 1990.
In addition to hearing cases on the First Circuit, Justice Souter participated in civics education curriculum reform efforts in New Hampshire during his retirement.
Article updated.
Previous article -
Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter died Thursday at his home in New Hampshire, the court said in a statement. He was 85 years old.
Souter, who was appointed to the high court in 1990 by President George H.W. Bush, retired in 2009.
"Justice David Souter served our Court with great distinction for nearly twenty years. He brought uncommon wisdom and kindness to a lifetime of public service," Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement.
"After retiring to his beloved New Hampshire in 2009, he continued to render significant service to our branch by sitting regularly on the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit for more than a decade," Roberts said. "He will be greatly missed."
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Original article -
Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter died Thursday at his home in New Hampshire, the court said in a statement. He was 85 years old.
This is breaking news. Please refresh for updates.
= new reply since forum marked as read
When was the last Justice to retire that young? Certainly long before I was born, I'm sure. Imagine if he didn't retire? Trump would be picking his replacement. 
