antonin gregory scalia (march 11, 1936 – february 13, 2016) was a conservative jurist on the supreme court of the united states. he was an associate justice. scalia was put on the court in 1986 by ronald reagan and was the longest-serving justice on the court. before becoming a justice, he was on the district of columbia court of appeals and was a law professor. he was a roman catholic born to italian american parents. he was the first italian-american on the court.