Articles

Profile of the Hon. William M. Erlbaum

by Michael Goldsmith

This is an unusual profile for an unusual judge. Generally, in the preparation of these profiles, this reporter interviews the judges in their chambers. Justice Erlbaum, however, invited the press to lunch, and the glass of wine the press consumed, (as well as the excellent eggplant rollatini), affected the Fourth Estate's ability to take coherent notes. On reflection, this may not have been a bad thing, because to properly profile Justice Erlbaum, it is more important to understand his views, which are more important than the details of his career.

Justice Erlbaum grew us in the Bedford Styvessant area of Brooklyn. He was a rambunctious youth, and never originally aspired to sit on the bench. One day, while still a young boy, his father, who had owned an auto parts store, received a summons for violating the City's "Sunday Law," which prohibited businesses to operate on Sundays. He faced stiff penalties, and the confiscation of his stock. Ultimately, he decided to defend himself, and took his young son with him. "The court was a place where an individual could fight for his rights in a public forum" recalled the Judge. Judge Erlbaum was so taken with the court system, that he decided right there to become a lawyer. "After that, I missed a lot of school," said the Judge, "because I would play hooky to go to the courthouse to watch trials."

Justice Erlbaum eventually went on to earn his undergraduate degree from Brooklyn College, and a Masters Degree from the University of Connecticut. Both degrees were in sociology. He received his LLB from Brooklyn Law School.

Justice Erlbaum, after his admission to the bar, went on to a distinguished career as a criminal defense attorney, specializing in trials and appeals. He was a participant in the most sensational homicide case ever brought in Queens County, the People v. Alice Crimmins.

Alice Crimmins was an attractive cocktail waitress charged with killing her two young children. The trial garnered national tabloid attention because of the defendant's alleged "swinging lifestyle" and the horrific Homeric proportions of her crime. After her original conviction was reversed, Future Supreme Court Justice Thomas Demakos was assigned to the prosecution for the second trial, and future Justice Erlbaum was part of the all-star defense team.

The prosecution's theory was that Crimmins was prevented from going out with one of her paramours because her daughter was crying. To quiet her, Crimmins suffocated the child to death. She later killed her 5-year-old son because he was a witness. The defense maintained that the killings were done by an outside kidnapper.

Ultimately, Crimmins was convicted in the second trial of murdering her son, and for manslaughter in the death of her daughter. The Appellate division overturned the manslaughter conviction, but the Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction. The conviction for the murder of the boy was overturned because the appeals' courts decided that the cause of death was never determined.

At the next table in the restaurant at which the Judge was entertaining the press, sat Justice Erlbaum's old adversary, Justice Demakos. Justice Demakos, who was previously profiled by this reporter, looked over and said "What can I say about Bill Erlbaum? He still thinks Alice Crimmins was innocent." Justice Erlbaum smiled, and shot back, "We convinced everyone in that courtroom of her innocence, except the 12 people on the jury." The obvious respect and mutual admiration these two distinguished colleagues and former adversaries had for each other harkened back to a day when the practice of law did not require a written code of civility for attorneys.

A congenial and professorial man, Justice Erlbaum began his judicial career in the Criminal Court in 1979, after his appointment by noted People's Court Judge, then Mayor, Edward I. Koch. Mayor Koch, early in his administration, decided to take the judicial system out of the patronage category, and appoint candidates on the basis of merit. At the time of his appointment, Justice Erlbaum had been in private practice for 17 years, and was the President of the Criminal Courts Bar Association of Queens.

In October, 1980, Mayor Koch invited the members of the bench to submit an analysis of the problems of the criminal justice system, and to suggest solutions. At that time, Judge Erlbaum, a highly principled man, and deemed by some as "too independent a judge," was facing an uphill battle to be renominated for his position. Despite his lack of political connections, Judge Erlbaum nevertheless submitted a response delineating his suggestions for the improvement of the criminal justice system.

Among Judge Erlbaum's suggestions were the following:

There should be a better working relationship between the Criminal Court and the Department of Social Services. Many defendants (and society on the whole) would benefit through social work intervention upon release.

Conditions at Riker's Island should be improved, specifically, prisoners should be protected from each other. The practical effect of harsh jail conditions is that some judges become reluctant to remand certain defendants, or to fix high bail, in a larger group of cases.

Judge Erlbaum was eventually reappointed by Mayor Koch to the Criminal Court, and has served as an acting Supreme Court Justice in the Criminal Term, since October, 1996.

Justice Erlbaum is involved in many humanitarian projects. He served on the Board of Directors of Providence House. He is currently a member of the Project For the Homeless of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, as well as the International Human Rights Committee of the N.Y. State Bar Association. Previously, he was a member and served on the Board of Directors of the Correctional Education Consortium (of higher educational institutions and business to offer an education to inmates). He was the co-founder and served on the advisory board of the ACLU Access to Justice Project (an inquiry into housing court problems), and served on the ACLU Victim's Rights Committee. A judge as well as an intellectual, Justice Erlbaum not only presides over a courtroom, he also presides over a classroom. Since 1979, he has been an Adjunct Professor Law at Brooklyn Law School, and Adjunct Professor of Political Science at CUNY, York College. He has also lectured extensively on various topics (drug abuse, DWI, housing and family court topics, criminal law, international law, to name a few) to a wide ranging audience including the NYC Police Academy, NYC Corporation Counsel, Office of Court Administration, the United Nations, NYS Bar Association, and the National Association of Women Judges.

Justice Erlbaum is married to Carol Crawford, and artist and interior designer, and has four children.