Indicted Democratic Leader Swears In Brooklyn Judge

"Jeffrey Feldman, the executive director of the Brooklyn Democratic Party, presided over the swearing in ceremony Tuesday of Martin M. Solomon, a Civil Court judge who was elected to the Supreme Court in November. A recent series of indictments and Commission on Judicial Conduct findings against several Brooklyn judges has led to intense scrutiny of the ties between politics and the judiciary in the borough. Both Mr. Feldman and Brooklyn Democratic leader, Assemblyman Clarence Norman, have been indicted on charges of pressuring judicial candidates to hire favored vendors for their campaigns. Justice Solomon, through a spokesman, said he had no comment. On Monday, Mr. Feldman and Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes crossed paths at the swearing in of ShawnDya Simpson, who had been an assistant district attorney in Brooklyn before her election to the Civil Court. Judge Simpson, who had party backing, thanked both Mr. Feldman and Mr. Norman at the ceremony, a source said. Judge Simpson could not be reached for comment yesterday." -- Daniel Wise
New York Law Journal, January 9, 2004