Contact: Sunny Mindel/ Edward Skyler (212) 788-2958
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today reappointed ten Judges to the Criminal Court, six Judges to the Civil Court and one Judge to the Family Court. The Mayor also appointed one new Judge to the Family Court.
"Serving as a judge is a great responsibility, as each of these jurists is charged with ensuring the preservation of the rule of law in New York City," the Mayor said. "Because the decisions made by these jurists affect the lives of all New Yorkers and contribute to the quality of justice in New York City, judicial appointments are among one of my most important responsibilities. Today, I am proud to administer the oath of office to this distinguished group of public servants."
Criminal Court Reappointments
The Mayor reappointed the following ten Criminal Court Judges:
Jeffery Atlas was first appointed a Criminal Court Judge in 1980, and designated an Acting Supreme Court Justice in New York County in 1982. A former Assistant District Attorney in New York County, and attorney in private practice, Judge Atlas has also served as Superseding District Attorney in New York County. Judge Atlas currently lectures at Columbia University Law School and is a graduate of Syracuse University and Fordham University School of Law.
Bernard J. Fried has been a Criminal Court Judge since 1980, and an Acting Supreme Court Justice in New York County since 1984. After spending two years in Korea as a Fulbright scholar, Judge Fried became an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of New York, serving as Chief of the Narcotics Section, Chief of the Appeals Division, Chief of the Criminal Division, and becoming Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney in 1978. Judge Fried has been an adjunct professor in trial advocacy at Brooklyn Law School since 1981. He is a graduate of Alfred University and Brooklyn Law School.
William E. Garnett was appointed Criminal Court Judge in 1991, assigned to Kings and Richmond Counties, and sits as an Acting Supreme Court Justice on a per diem basis. Judge Garnett served as an Assistant District Attorney in Richmond County as Supreme Court Deputy Bureau Chief, Investigations Bureau Chief, and the Supreme Court Bureau Chief. Judge Garnett is a graduate of Fordham University and Brooklyn Law School, and received a LLM from New York University Graduate School of Law.
William I. Mogulescu was appointed a Criminal Court Judge in 1990 and designated an Acting Supreme Court Justice in Bronx County in 1998. Judge Mogulescu was in private practice for 15 years, and has taught trial advocacy as an adjunct professor at Cardozo Law School since 1983 and New York Law School since 1993. Judge Mogulescu is a graduate of Clark University and New York University School of Law.
Ruth Pickholz has been a Criminal Court Judge, New York County, since 1991. She previously served as supervising attorney in the Legal Aid Society, senior examining attorney in the City's Department of Investigation, coordinator of the Arson Strike Force, Counsel to the Criminal Justice Coordinator, Acting Criminal Justice Coordinator, and Counsel to then Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Milton Mollen. Judge Pickholz is a graduate of Hunter College and Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Rosalyn H. Richter has been a Criminal Court Judge since 1990, an Acting Supreme Court Justice since 1997, and Supervising Judge in the Bronx County, Criminal Court since 1998. She was previously the Executive Director, Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, an Assistant District Attorney in Kings County, and an Administrative Law Judge in the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings. Judge Richter is a magna cum laude graduate of Barnard College and received a JD from Brooklyn Law School.
Charles H. Solomon was appointed a Criminal Court Judge in February of 1986, designated an Acting Supreme Court Justice since 1989, and served as Supervising Judge, New York City Arraignment Parts, and Supervising Judge, New York County Criminal Court. Formerly an Assistant District Attorney in New York County and Deputy Chief of a Trial Bureau, Judge Solomon also was in private practice. Judge Solomon is a graduate of State University of New York at Stony Brook and Brooklyn Law School.
Robert H. Straus was first appointed as a Criminal Court Judge in 1987, and designated an Acting Supreme Court Justice in Bronx County in 1994. Judge Straus was an attorney in private practice before becoming a staff attorney with the Legal Aid Society and later an Assistant District Attorney in Nassau and Kings County. He also served as a United States Administrative Law Judge. Judge Straus received a BA from Franklin and Marshal College and New York University School of Law. He also received an MA from Hofstra University.
Joan Sudolnik has been a Criminal Court Judge since 1980, and an Acting Supreme Court Justice in New York County since 1988. Judge Sudolnik previously served as an Assistant District Attorney in New York County, became Chief of the Major Felony Program, and in 1977 the Administrative Assistant District Attorney. Judge Sudolnik is a graduate of Kent State University and New York University School of Law.
Patricia Anne Williams was appointed a Criminal Court Judge in 1986, and designated an Acting Supreme Court Justice in 1989 in Bronx County. Judge Williams was formerly an associate at Wilkie, Farr & Gallagher in New York City and an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York. Judge Williams received a BA from Cornell University, a JD from Yale Law School, and received an MA from Columbia University.
Civil Court Reappointments
The Mayor reappointed the following six Civil Court Judges:
Richard Allman was appointed a Civil Court Judge in June of 1999. Prior to joining the Bench, Judge Allman was Law Secretary to New York State Court of Claims Judge Phylis Skloot Bamberger, and served as an appellate Attorney for the Legal Aid Society in New York County. Judge Allman is a graduate of Franklin & Marshall College and Pace University School of Law.
Ellen M. Coin was appointed a Civil Court Judge and assigned to criminal court in New York County in 1998. Formerly an Assistant District Attorney in Kings County, she also served as a Special Attorney in the Department of Justice assigned to the Organized Crime Strike Force in the Eastern District of New York, and was a partner in a Manhattan law firm. Judge Coin is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and New York University School of Law.
Jerome M. Kay was first appointed a Criminal Court Judge in 1974 and then a civil court judge in 1996, and has served as Acting and Deputy Supervising Judge and Judge-in-Charge in Kings County. Prior to his appointment, Judge Kay was an Assistant to the Honorable Jack B. Weinstein, then reporter for the Advisory Committee on Practice and Procedure of the New York State Temporary Commission on the Courts, and in 1965, was appointed a Commissioner of the New York City Commission on Human Rights. Judge Kay is a graduate of New York University and Columbia University Law School.
Jeffrey D. Lebowitz was appointed a Civil Court Judge in 1993 and is currently assigned to Queens County Criminal Court. Judge Lebowitz previously served as Law Secretary to Supreme Court Justice Philip J. Chetta. He also held positions as an instructor in legal writing at the Long Island School of Paralegal Studies and an arbitrator in Small Claims Court. Judge Lebowitz is a graduate of State University of New York at Binghamton and Hofstra University School of Law.
Judith Lieb was appointed to Civil Court bench in July of 1999 in Bronx County. She began as a Law Clerk to U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit Judge Betty B. Fletcher in Seattle, became an associate in a private law firm, and then served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of New York. Judge Lieb is a graduate of Michigan Law School and Yale University.
Robert M. Stolz was appointed Civil Court Judge in 1995, and assigned to New York County Criminal Court. He was in private practice before joining the United States Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of New York where he became Chief of the Frauds Section. Judge Stolz is a graduate of Columbia College and Fordham University Law School.
Family Court Reappointment
The Mayor reappointed the following Family Court Judge today:
Paula J. Hepner was first appointed a Family Court Judge in Kings County in 1990. She previously held positions at the Protection and Advocacy System for Developmental Disabilities, Advocates for Children of New York, Inc., the Public Education Association, and the Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York. In 1985, she served as a supervisory attorney at the Human Resources Administration's Office of Legal Affairs. Judge Hepner is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and Hofstra University School of Law.
Family Court New Appointment
The Mayor appointed the following Family Court Judge today:
Helen C. Sturm served as an Assistant District Attorney in New York County, becoming Deputy Bureau Chief and Bureau Chief of the Juvenile Crime Unit. While at the District Attorney's Office, Ms. Sturm also served on the Mayor's Task Force to Combat Juvenile Crime. In 1983, she left New York and became an Assistant Attorney General in the Office of the Attorney General in New Mexico, and an associate in a law firm in Santa Fe before rejoining the District Attorney's Office in New York County as a Senior Supervising Attorney. Ms. Sturm is a graduate of Hofstra University and Brooklyn Law School.