Amici Podcast

Milton Tingling by John Caher

Fifty years ago, Judge Harold Arnoldus Stevens made history when he became the first African American to sit on New York's highest court, the Court of Appeals. In this extraordinary podcast, the two attorneys who served as Judge Steven's law clerks -- Robert McGreevy and Lawrence Zweifach -- provide an inside look at this trailblazer. Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/docume...

As the third of eight children in an Irish Catholic family, future Deputy Chief Administrative Judge James P. Murphy picked up a lot of skills early on that would come in handy when he undertook the daunting task of overseeing day-to-day trial court operations in 57 of New York’s 62 counties and put him in charge of 640 judges and 6,000 non-judicial employees: teamwork, collaboration, humility, gr...

In this Diversity Dialogue segment, we are honored and delighted to welcome to the program a truly historic figure, the Honorable Milton A. Tingling, the keystone of a nation's first three-generation family of Black judges. The Tingling family history and legacy is truly remarkable. "You don't command respect," he said. "You earn respect." NOTE: THE PODCAST DESCRIBES JUDGE TINGLING AS NEW YORK'S F...

Daniel Santiago-Stewart, a Senior Management Analyst in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, discusses the challenges of growing up gay in a deeply religious home, and his successful quest for happiness and peace. "I am happy. Things could have been easier, but I don't regret what happened because I am who I am because of it. I am strong because of it." Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites...

In this Diversity Dialogue podcast, Linda Wiedrick, Chief Clerk in the Erie County Surrogate's Court, discusses her Mohawk roots and family story, reveals that the Mohawks were the first feminists and environmentalists, and shares the traditional Native American prayer of Thanksgiving. "We're here. We're strong. We're surviving. We're striving not to lose our customs and traditions," says Ms. Wied...

In this Diversity Dialogue edition, the Hon. Lillian Wan, the first and only Asian American woman to serve on any of the four departments of the Appellate Division, discusses her childhood, growing up with immigrant parents, the biases she confronted and how those life experiences made her the judge she is. “I wanted my courtroom to be a place where everyone feels welcome, everyone feels included,...

" I can't think of anything more important in today's society than to defend the Judiciary." In this Amici podcast, former Presiding Justice Rolando T. Acosta of the Appellate Division, First Department, explains how growing up under a dictatorship where the judiciary was complicit in, rather than a force against, injustice, fueled his passion for judicial independence from political pressure. Tra...

In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion is pleased to present this podcast interview with Sgt. Bernice Torres, a NYS court officer who will discuss her Puerto Rican roots, her journey out of poverty, how she became a world class handball player -- and why she insists that she has the best law enforcement job possible. Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/defa...

The Hon. Peter O'Donoghue didn't let blindness interfere with his goals of attending college and law school, passing the bar and ultimately becoming a judge. In this new Diversity Dialogue podcast, Judge O'Donoghue shares his inspiring story. Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2023-08/Judge%20O-Donoghue_0.pdf

In this Diversity Dialogue segment, the Hon. Joseph Zayas, the first Latino ever appointed Chief Administrative Judge in NYS, discusses his childhood in a Harlem housing project, growing up with a mentally ill father and his vision for the court system he manages. Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2023-07/Judge%20ZayasFINAL_0.pdf

Dr. Christine Farrow, the first female and first African American ever to serve as Commissioner of Jurors in Erie County, reflects on her life, her career, the importance of mentoring and her challenge in diversifying the jury pool. Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2023-07/Christine%20Farrow.pdf

In this Diversity Dialogue podcast, New York Chief Judge Rowan D. Wilson discusses his childhood growing up with a totally blind mother, his recent appointment as the first Chief Judge of color in state history, his bottom-up management style and his plan to create more work for his colleagues on the high court. Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2023-06/Chief%...

In this presentation of the Unified Court System's Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Charlie Arrowood, senior counsel to the Richard C. Failla LGBTQ Commission discusses their own gender transition, the meaning of terms such as "non-binary" and why the use of "they" and "them" as a singular pronoun is both appropriate and grammatically correct. Transcript: ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/fi…0Arrow...

In honor of Asian American Pacific Islander Month, Diversity Dialogues is honored to present the Hon. Shahabuddeen Ally a native of Guyana and the first Muslim man elected to the bench in New York State. An unabashed believer in the American Dream, Judge Ally grew up in a one-bedroom South Bronx apartment that housed as many as 13 people. Compared to the life they left behind in Guyana, it was par...

Randy Bowens, the Statewide Equal Justice Coordinator for the NYS Courts, discusses his background and new role in this Diversity Dialogue podcast of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2023-04/Randy%20Bowens.pdf

Thirty years ago today, the Hon. Judith S. Kaye made history when she was sworn in as the first female Chief Judge in New York State, a position she would hold for a record-breaking 15 years. All told, Judge Kaye, who was the first woman ever to sit on the state’s highest court, served 25 years, three months, 19 days and 12 hours on the Court of Appeals. In a special Women’s History Month edition...

Seventy-six years ago, the Mendez family and other Mexican American families in Southern California took on segregated schools and set the stage for the US Supreme Court's landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education. On March 23, a re-enactment of Mendez will be presented in Manhattan and virtually To commemorate the decision from a Ninth Circuit US Court of Appeals, the Latino Judges’ Associ...

Judges Troy Webber and Richard Rivera — proud products of the South Bronx — were inspired to become lawyers, judges and co-chairs of the Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission by the injustices they witnessed as children. In this Diversity Dialogue podcast, the judges talk about their childhoods, what they witnessed and their mission in co-chairing the first court-based commission in the nation...

Salihah Denman -- a first generation immigrant from Suriname and the first member of her family to attend law school -- discusses the New York Legal Opportunity Program or "NY LEO," an extraordinary initiative of the NYS Judicial Institute that helps traditionally underrepresented students prepare for law school.

In this Native American Heritage Month episode of Diversity Dialogues, we are proud to feature the Hon. Mark Montour, the first Native American ever elected to a state judicial position. In this podcast, Judge Montour, who serves on the Appellate Division, Fourth Department, discusses his Mohawk roots and the history of his tribe. Transcript: http://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/fi...

Perhaps more than anyone else, Jeff Carucci has spearheaded the NYS Court System's lengthy effort to make "e-filing" accessible in every court and every county. On the occasion of Jeff's retirement, please enjoy this short chat with a man known internally as a "true gentleman." Transcript: http://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2022-11/Jeff%20Carucci.pdf

After scoring a number of “firsts” in her judicial career –first African American woman appointed as Supervising Judge in the Ninth JD, first woman to be appointed Administrative Judge in the Ninth and the first African American to be appointed Administrative Judge outside of New York City – Judge Kathie E. Davidson has embarked on a new challenge: running the cutting-edge think thank that is the...

For this Diversity Dialogue segment, we're pleased to feature Chief David Santiago. Chief Santiago, a court officer since Bill Clinton was president and Mario Cuomo was governor, was the first person of color and first Latino in Suffolk County to become a sergeant and a lieutenant and a captain and a major and now chief. Transcript: http://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2022-0...

Every day, the NYS Court System interacts with people of all backgrounds, all skill sets and all education levels. Our materials, both in print and online, are only helpful if they are clear, concise and intelligible to all. Bill Perritt is leading our effort to cleanse court materials of legalese, unnecessary jargon, confusing acronyms and bureaucratese. Transcript: http://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/...