Sandra O'Connor, Baltimore County's state's attorney for more than three decades, has said she will retire, her office said Wednesday.

A Republican, O'Connor said she would retire in December 2006 when her eighth term ends, according to a release from Baltimore County State's Attorney's office.

There's more to say about this justice, but in the end I found myself liking her, admiring her, and respecting the opinions she wrote, even when I disagreed. Unlike Thomas, who works his dogma like a man pushing a plow, or Scalia, who seems to think he's better than everyone else, O'Connor looked at the cases from a human perspective, mostly.

It's a sad day, because we know the wingnuts are going to try to replace her with someone like Gonzales the Torturer.