United States Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia dies at 79
United States Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia reportedly was found dead at a Texas ranch Saturday, Feb. 13, the San Antonio Express News reported on its website.
He was 79.
The newspaper quoted U.S. District Judge Fred Biery.
“My condolences are with the Scalia family as we hear of Justice Scalia's passing today,” said Second District Congressman Brad Wenstrup.
“He was a true patriot and defender of the Constitution.”
“I was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of an American icon, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, an individual who has been throughout his career one of the staunchest defenders of the United States Constitution,” said Ohio Senator Bill Beagle.
Justice Scalia was born in Trenton, N.J., March 11, 1936.
He married Maureen McCarthy and has nine children: Ann Forrest, Eugene, John Francis, Catherine Elisabeth, Mary Clare, Paul David, Matthew, Christopher James, and Margaret Jane.
According to the Supreme Court, Justice Scalia received his A.B. from Georgetown University and the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, and his LL.B. from Harvard Law School, and was a Sheldon Fellow of Harvard University from 1960–1961. He was in private practice in Cleveland, Ohio from 1961–1967, a Professor of Law at the University of Virginia from 1967–1971, and a Professor of Law at the University of Chicago from 1977–1982, and a Visiting Professor of Law at Georgetown University and Stanford University.
Justice Scalia was chairman of the American Bar Association’s Section of Administrative Law, 1981–1982, and its Conference of Section Chairmen, 1982–1983. He served the federal government as General Counsel of the Office of Telecommunications Policy from 1971–1972, Chairman of the Administrative Conference of the United States from 1972–1974, and Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel from 1974–1977. He was appointed Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 1982. President Reagan nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat September 26, 1986.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a statement Saturday afternoon extending condolences to Scalia's family. He called the justice "the solid rock who turned away so many attempts to depart from and distort the Constitution."
Chief Justice John G. Roberts said: “On behalf of the Court and retired Justices, I am saddened to report that our colleague Justice Antonin Scalia has passed away. He was an extraordinary individual and jurist, admired and treasured by his colleagues. His passing is a great loss to the Court and the country he so loyally served. We extend our deepest condolences to his wife Maureen and his family.”
Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) issued the following statement on the passing of Justice Scalia: “I’m deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Antonin Scalia. The country has lost an intellectual giant, and an extraordinary Supreme Court justice. I was honored to know him and appreciated his constitutional expertise as well as his warmth and humor. He was one of the pre-eminent Supreme Court justices of our time, as well as a tireless champion of the rule of law and defender of the Constitution. Jane and I extend our condolences to his wife, Maureen, and his family on their loss."