Body Of First Muslim, African-American Woman Judge Appointed To New York Court Of Appeals Found In Hudson River
A terrible blow for the legal community.
Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam (via NY1)
Awful news from New York: Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam has been found dead, a day after she was reported missing. Her body was found in the Hudson River. Judge Abdus-Salaam was the first African-American woman, and the first Muslim, appointed to the New York State Court of Appeals — the highest court in the state.
According to the New York Times, the police are investigating how she wound up in the river, but have not found any signs of trauma:
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Officers with the New York Police Department’s Harbor Unit responded about 1:45 p.m. [Wednesday] to a report of a person floating by the shore near West 132nd Street in Upper Manhattan. Judge Abdus-Salaam, 65, was taken to a pier on the Hudson River and was pronounced dead by paramedics shortly after 2 p.m.
The police were investigating how she ended up in the river, and it was not clear how long Judge Abdus-Salaam, who lived nearby in Harlem, had been missing. There were no signs of trauma on her body, the police said. She was fully clothed.
A law enforcement official said investigators had found no signs of criminality. Her husband identified her body.
The outpouring from the legal community has been touching, with words praising her legal mind and expressing their deep sense of loss.
New York State Court of Appeals Chief Judge Janet DiFiore said:
Her personal warmth, uncompromising sense of fairness and bright legal mind were an inspiration to all of us who had the good fortune to know her.
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The former Chief Judge, Jonathan Lippman, knew Abdus-Salaam for years, and he noted:
The court has suffered a terrible blow.
And New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who appointed Abdus-Salaam to the Court of Appeals in 2013, expressed his sympathies as well:
The Times goes on to describes her as a “steadfast liberal voice” in her jurisprudence:
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On the court, Judge Abdus-Salaam was among the most reliable and steadfast liberal voices, regularly siding with vulnerable parties — the poor, impoverished immigrants and people with mental illnesses, for instance — against more powerful and established interests. She also tended to lean toward injured parties who brought claims of misconduct, fraud or breach of contract against wealthy corporations.
The judge graduated from Barnard College and received her J.D. from Columbia Law School in 1977, where she was a classmate of former Attorney General Eric Holder. Her career was dedicated to public interest, starting as a staff attorney at East Brooklyn Legal Services, before becoming an Assistant Attorney General in the New York State Department of Law, Civil Rights and Real Estate Financing Bureaus, and serving as General Counsel for the New York City Office of Labor Services, before she was first elected as a judge.
Our thoughts go out to the family, friends and colleagues of this accomplished jurist.
UPDATE: The New York Daily News is reporting that a police source said Judge Abdus-Salaam likely committed suicide:
The pioneering judge found dead on the banks of the Hudson River was struggling with depression and likely took her own life, a police source said Thursday.
It was unclear if state Court of Appeals Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam left behind a suicide note, and cops were awaiting the results of an autopsy before saying anything more, the source told the Daily News.
If you or anyone you know is struggling with depression or suicidal thoughts, please, reach out for help.
State Court of Appeals Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam found dead near Hudson River likely committed suicide, police say [New York Daily NEws]
Sheila Abdus-Salaam, Judge on New York’s Top Court, Is Found Dead in Hudson River [New York Times]
Kathryn Rubino is an editor at Above the Law. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).
