Credit: brooklyneagle.com
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New York’s highest court will be losing its leader before the summer comes to an end. Janet DiFiore announced that she is stepping down from her position as Chief Justice of the New York Court of Appeals on August 31st. The 66-year-old judge’s resignation comes amidst an ongoing ethics violation against her by the state’s Judicial Commission on Judicial Conduct.
The Chief Justice ordered an internal review of the alleged racist actions of Dennis Quirk, the head of the court officer’s union. In the middle of the investigation, Quirk emailed Judge DiFiore threatening to release private information about her life according to one news report.
Quirk went through a disciplinary hearing resulting in a temporary suspension from his job as a court officer. As the proceedings were taking place, Judge DiFiore submitted a letter to Phyllis Flug, who was overseeing the hearing. The Chief Justice urged “significant sanctions” against Quirk or the integrity of the court will be questioned.
New York’s Judicial Conduct rules state judges may not lend the influence and prestige of the office to aid in their private interests, and they are not allowed to voluntarily testify as a character witness. Quirk believes DiFiore’s letter to Ms. Flug violated the rule and improperly influenced a disciplinary hearing.
Judge DiFiore was appointed to the chair in 2015 by Governor Andrew Cuomo. The Chief Justice’s position not only hears cases with the nine-person high court but oversees New York’s entire Judicial System. In the last seven years, she turned around a failing court system ensuring legal equality for everybody.
DiFiore’s rulings during her tenure often coincided with the court’s Conservative block angering the Progressive-leaning Democrats in the state house. In April, the Chief Justice penned an opinion rejecting the re-drawing of Congressional districts in New York. She wrote the lines were “drawn with impermissible partisan purpose” and ordered them to be re-drawn with the aid of a neutral party. The ruling angered the Democrats and damaged their ability to maintain control of Congress in the upcoming mid-term elections.
Her resignation has generated a flurry of calls and demands for Governor Hochul to appoint a progressive replacement. “We’re clearly trying to avoid having our own version of the U.S. Supreme Court here in New York,” State Senator Michael Gianaris, who serves as the Deputy Majority Leader said. “Under DiFiore’s leadership, that’s where this court was headed. So, I’m glad she is resigning.”
Governor Cuomo nominated her in 2015 because of her tough-on-crime record. The then GOP-controlled Senate unanimously approved DiFiore despite being a Democratic District Attorney. The Chief Justice had a favorable rating in the eyes of many Democrats as recent as last year. The progressive faction of the party seems to be growing in power within the state and they no longer see DiFiore as an ally. They even regret voting unanimously for Madeline Singas in 2021. Judge Singas votes in line with the Chief Justice on every vote since. Democrats are not happy with the state of the current court.
Governor Hochul will be under tremendous pressure to appoint a progressive replacement for Chief Justice DiFiore. Both the nation and New York are seeing a drastic increase in violent crime and while a left-leaning Justice may allow for redistricting if they are soft on crime, that will not sit well with the residents of New York
