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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 24, 2003
PR- 025-03
www.nyc.gov


MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG SWEARS IN 29 JUDGES

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg today swore in twenty-nine judges to serve in the City’s  Criminal, Family and Civil courts.  The swearing-in ceremony included the Mayor’s first new appointments to the City’s courts: three new Family Court Judges, five new Criminal Court Judges, and one new Interim Civil Court Judge.  The Mayor also reappointed three Family Court Judges, thirteen Criminal Court Judges, and four Interim Civil Court Judges.  Mayor Bloomberg swore in the judges at New York County Surrogate’s Court.

“I am pleased to appoint such a distinguished group of judges and I am especially proud of the new judges I am appointing,” Mayor Bloomberg said.  “The men and women sworn in today possess the knowledge, experience, and integrity to achieve the important goal of serving New Yorkers competently and ethically.  I am confident that the judicial system as well as the people of this City will benefit as a result of their efforts.”

The Mayor swore in the following judges:

New Appointments

Criminal Court

Judge Richard Allman had been an Interim Civil Court Judge since 1999, and he was  appointed today to Criminal Court.  Judge Allman, who was previously law secretary to Judge Phyllis Skloot Bamberger, received a JD from Pace University School of Law.

Judge Ellen Coin had been an Interim Civil Court Judge since 1998, and she was appointed today to Criminal Court.  Judge Coin, who has been a state and federal prosecutor and a partner at a private law firm, received a JD from New York University School of Law.

Judge Douglas Hoffman had been a Housing Court Judge since 1996, and he was appointed today to Criminal Court. Judge Hoffman, who had also been the Director of Housing, Family and Civil Litigation at the Legal Aid Society, will be assigned to serve as an Acting Family Court Judge. He received his JD from New York University School of Law.

Judge Robert Stolz, who had been an Interim Civil Court Judge since 1995, was appointed today to Criminal Court.  Judge Stolz, who has been a federal prosecutor and a lawyer in private practice, received a JD from Fordham Law School.

Judge Alvin Yearwood has spent most of his career at the Bronx County District Attorney’s office, most recently as a Trial Counsel and Supervisor in the Domestic Violence/Sex Crimes Bureau.   Judge Yearwood received a JD from Boston University School of Law.

Family Court

Judge Ruben Martino had served as a Housing Court Judge in the Bronx since 1994 and was appointed today to the Family Court.  Judge Martino, who was Senior Supervising Attorney of the Housing Unit and Supervising Attorney of the Family and Consumer Unit at the Legal Aid Society, received a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Judge Edwina Richardson-Thomas was a member of the Family Court Assigned Counsel Panel for ten years, and she has served as a Court Attorney-Referee in the Queens County Family Court since July 2001.  Judge Richardson-Thomas is a graduate of CUNY Law School, and she holds a PhD in Criminal Justice from CUNY Graduate Center.

Judge Myrna Martinez-Perez, whom Mayor Bloomberg appointed as an Interim Civil Court Judge in 2001, was appointed to Family Court today.  Judge Martinez-Perez had previously been appointed to the Family Court in 1990 and 1992.  Judge Martinez-Perez received a JD from Rutgers University School of Law.

Interim Civil Court

Judge Mary O’Donoghue most recently served as Administrative Assistant United States Attorney at the United States Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York.  She was also Chief of the Child Abuse, Domestic Violence and Juvenile Crimes Bureau at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.  She will be assigned to sit in Family Court.  Judge O’Donoghue received a JD from St. John’s University School of Law. 

Reappointments

Criminal Court

Judge Allen Alpert, who is an Acting Supreme Court Justice, was first appointed to the Criminal Court in 1983.  Prior to becoming a judge, he was an Assistant District Attorney at the New York County District Attorney’s Office.  Judge Alpert is a graduate of Syracuse University College of Law.

Judge James Burke has been a Criminal Court Judge since 2001.  Judge Burke, who was a prosecutor at the New York County District Attorney’s Office for twelve years, received a JD from Georgetown University Law Center.

Judge Richard Carruthers, who has served as a Criminal Court Judge since 1983, is an Acting Supreme Court Justice.  Before becoming a judge, Judge Carruthers was a prosecutor at the Kings County District Attorney’s Office and the Office of the Deputy Attorney General for Medicaid Fraud Control.  He received a JD from Georgetown University Law School and an LL.M. from New York University School of Law.

Judge John Carter, who has been a prosecutor at the New York County District Attorney’s Office and an attorney in private practice, was appointed as a Criminal Court Judge in 2000.  Judge Carter is a graduate of Columbia Law School.

Judge James Gibbons was appointed as a Criminal Court Judge in 2001.  Judge Gibbons, who spent thirteen years at the New York County District Attorney’s Office before becoming a judge, received a JD from Harvard Law School.

Judge Joel Goldberg, who is an Acting Supreme Court Justice, has served on the Criminal Court bench since 1987.  Judge Goldberg was an Assistant District Attorney at the Kings County District Attorney’s Office for sixteen years, and he received a JD from New York University School of Law.

Judge Joseph Grosso was appointed as a Criminal Court Judge in 1991 after serving for ten years as Chief Law Assistant in the New York City Criminal Court.  Judge Grosso is an Acting Supreme Court Justice, and he received a JD from New York Law School.

Judge William Harrington has been a Criminal Court Judge since 2001.  Judge Harrington, who was a prosecutor in Kings County and then Prinicipal Law Clerk to Justice Albert Tomei of Kings County Supreme Court, received a JD from George Washington University.

Judge Alan Marrus, who is an Acting Supreme Court Justice, was first appointed as a Criminal Court Judge in 1983.  Judge Marrus was Chief of the Appeals Bureau at the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office before becoming a judge, and he received a JD from George Washington University.

Judge Edward McLaughlin, who was a prosecutor and then Deputy Executive Director of the Liman Commission on the Administration of Criminal Justice, was first appointed as a Criminal Court Judge in 1983.  Judge McLaughlin serves as an Acting Supreme Court Justice, and he is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center.

Judge Alan Meyer was first appointed to the Criminal Court Bench in 1983, after working at both the Legal Aid Society and the Richmond County District Attorney’s Office.  Judge Meyer serves as an Acting Supreme Court Justice, and he received a JD from St. John’s University School of Law.

Judge William Miller, who is an Acting Supreme Court, is the Supervising Judge of Kings and Richmond County Criminal Court.   He was Executive Assistant District Attorney at the Kings County District Attorney’s Office before being appointed a Criminal Court Judge in 1983.  Judge Miller is a graduate of Boston University School of Law.

Judge Patricia Nuñez, who served as a Law Assistant in Criminal and Supreme Courts and as a prosecutor at the New York County District Attorney’s Office, was appointed to the Criminal Court bench in 1997.  Judge Nuñez received a JD from Rutgers-Camden Law School.

Family Court

Judge Jody Adams was first appointed to the Family Court in 1993.  Before becoming a judge, Judge Adams directed and wrote the Vera Institute’s Family Court Disposition Study and practiced law in the Family Court.  She received a JD from Yale Law School.

Judge Rhoda Cohen has been a Family Court Judge since 1983.  Judge Cohen, who had been Attorney-in-Charge of the Legal Aid Society Juvenile Rights Division’s Staten Island Office,  is a graduate of Fordham University Law School.

Judge Guy DePhillips, who has served as a Family Court Judge since 1983, is the Supervising Judge of Queens County Family Court and is an Acting Supreme Court Justice.  Before becoming a judge, Judge DePhillips was Principal Appellate Law Assistant for the Supreme Court, Appellate Division, and he received an LLB from St. John’s University and an LLM from New York University School of Law.

Interim Civil Court

Judge Lenora Gerald was appointed as an Interim Civil Court Judge in 2001 after serving as Principal Law Clerk to Justice Alfred Lerner of the Appellate Division, Second Department.  Judge Gerald, who presides in Queens County Criminal Court, received a JD from St. John’s University School of Law.

Judge Susan Knipps, who serves as an Acting Supreme Court Justice and Supervising Judge of the New York County Family Court, was first appointed as an Interim Civil Court Judge in 2000.  Prior to taking the bench, Judge Knipps served in various positions in the courts, including Deputy Counsel to Chief Judge Judith Kaye.  Judge Knipps is a graduate of Yale Law School.

Judge Jeffrey Lebowitz, who is an Acting Supreme Court Justice, was first appointed as an Interim Civil Court Judge in 1993 and presides in Queens County Supreme Court.  Judge Lebowitz, who was Law Secretary to Judge Phillip Chetta, received a JD from Hofstra University School of Law.

Judge Judith Lieb was first appointed as an Interim Civil Court Judge in 1999 after serving as a federal prosecutor in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.  Judge Lieb, who is assigned to Bronx County Criminal Court, received a JD from Michigan Law School.

All appointments and reappointments were made after nominations by the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary.  The Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary nominates three candidates for each vacant judgeship, and the Mayor selects judges from among that group.  For reappointments, the Mayor’s Advisory Committee recommends whether or not to reappoint each judge, and the Mayor then decides whether to make the reappointment.  All of the judges appointed have also been found qualified by Judiciary Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, and were approved by Deputy Mayor for Legal Affairs Carol Robles-Román and Corporation Counsel Michael Cardozo.

Family and Criminal Court judges serve a ten-year term, and Interim Civil Court judges serve a one-year term.


 

www.nyc.gov

Contact: Edward Skyler / Lark-Marie Anton 
(212) 788-2958