Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter, nominated by George H. W. Bush, has died. He was 85 years old.
BREAKING: Former U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter, a judicial moderate and advocate for humanities and civics education, has died. He was 85 years old.
— ABC News (@ABC) May 9, 2025
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Former U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter, a lifelong public servant, judicial moderate and advocate for humanities and civics education, has died. He was 85 years old.
'Justice David Souter served our Court with great distinction for nearly twenty years,' Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement Friday. '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.'
Souter was nominated in 1990 by President George H.W. Bush, who praised him as 'a remarkable judge of keen intellect and the highest ability.'
Souter was born in Melrose, MA in 1939 to Helen Adams and Joseph Souter. He graduated from Concord High School in 1957 and attended Harvard University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and graduated magna cum laude. He earned a Master of Arts degree in jurisprudence from Magdalen College in Oxford in 1963 and a Bachelor of Laws from Harvard in 1966.
BREAKING NEWS: Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter died Thursday at home in New Hampshire. He was 85.
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) May 9, 2025
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Here is the statement from the Supreme Court:
BREAKING: Retired Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter, an H.W. Bush nominee, died Thursday at the age of 85, the court announced. He served on the court for more than 19 years. #SCOTUS pic.twitter.com/0oRVb89hql
— Katie Buehler (@bykatiebuehler) May 9, 2025
Souter retired from the court in 2009.
Justice David Souter gave much of his life in service to our country and its highest court.
— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) May 9, 2025
Our hearts are with his family and loved ones during this time of loss. https://t.co/HPJKTRXv7I
AG Pam Bondi also paid her respects:
I am deeply saddened to hear that Justice David Souter has passed away. He was a brilliant man who devoted his life to public service and our courts. I am praying for his family.
— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) May 9, 2025
As are we.
Justice David Souter was old-fashioned and removed from time in the best sense of that word. The last movie he'd seen in the theaters was "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid"
— Tim Wu (@superwuster) May 9, 2025
Amazing.
'"Beneath that controlled surface, Souter was “shattered,” @JeffreyToobin wrote. His disillusionment was such that he could not put the episode behind him. “There were times when David Souter thought of Bush v. Gore and wept,” Mr. Toobin wrote.' RIP. https://t.co/5qN5rgwI6p
— Samuel Moyn 🔭 (@samuelmoyn) May 9, 2025
Souter was one of the dissenters in Bush v. Gore, joining the court's liberal members.
While once engaged, Souter never married and has no surviving family. He was preceded in death by his parents; his father died in 1976 and his mother in 1995, having seen her son appointed to the Supreme Court.
Our condolences to his friends and loved ones. May he rest in peace.
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