Sotomayor Takes Oath from Chief Justice Roberts

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Source: Associated Press

Sotomayor takes oath from Chief Justice Roberts

By MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press Writer – 1 hr 5 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Sonia Sotomayor became the Supreme Court's newest justice Saturday, pledging during a brief ceremony at the high court to defend the Constitution and administer impartial justice.

Sotomayor, 55, is the first Hispanic justice and only the third woman in the court's 220-year history.

She took the second of two oaths of office from Chief Justice John Roberts in an ornate conference room, beneath a portrait of the legendary Chief Justice John Marshall. Her left hand resting on a Bible that was held by her mother, Celina, Sotomayor pledged to "do equal right to the poor and to the rich." Minutes earlier, she swore a first oath in a private ceremony in the room where the justices hold their private conferences.

Sotomayor wore a cream-colored suit and her right ankle, fractured in a fall a couple of weeks after her nomination to the court, was unbandaged. Her 60 or so guests included Justice Anthony Kennedy, White House counsel Greg Craig and other members of the Obama administration team that helped prepare her for her Senate confirmation hearings, family and friends.

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