Arizona Faces and Features Justice William Rehnquist  William Rehnquist (1924  2005) – William Rehnquist was appointed chief justice of the United States Supreme Court in 1986. In 1972, he became the first Arizona resident to be appointed to that court. Rehnquist was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1924. He was a top student in his classes at both Stanford University and Harvard University. Rehnquist moved to Phoenix and became a famous lawyer. He was appointed an associate 122  Chapter 12 • Arizona’s Government justice in the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., by President Richard M. Nixon in 1972. Fourteen years later, President Ronald Reagan appointed Rehnquist chief justice of the highest court in the country. William Rehnquist died on September 3, 2005. He served the people of Arizona and the United States on the Supreme Court for over 33 years. made William Rehnquist bold