Doris Irene Byrne (June 13, 1905 – June 28, 1975) was an American lawyer and politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. She was the first woman justice of the New York City Court of Special Sessions, appointed in 1950.

Life

She was born on June 13, 1905, in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, the daughter of Daniel J. Byrne (died 1955) and Mabel Byrne. Doris Byrne was a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

(Bronx Co., 2nd D.) in

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude Franco-Italian Agreement of 1935, an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * ...

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

and

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Fe ...

; and was Chairwoman of the Committee on Social Welfare in 1935. She resigned her seat upon the adjournment ''sine die'' of the legislature on May 8, 1937, and was appointed as Executive Deputy

Secretary of State of New York The secretary of state of New York is a cabinet officer in the government of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York who leads the New York State Department of State, Department of State (NYSDOS). The current secretary of state of New York ...

. On November 24, 1942, she was appointed to the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five Borough (New York City), boroughs. The council serves as a check against the Mayor of New York City, mayor in a may ...

to fill the vacancy caused by the absence of Lt. Col. Charles E. Keegan, and took her seat on December 1. She was a delegate to the

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

and

1948 Democratic National Convention The 1948 Democratic National Convention was held at Philadelphia Convention Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 12 to July 14, 1948, and resulted in the nominations of President Harry S. Truman for a full term and Senator Alben W. Ba ...

s; and was Vice Chairman of the

New York State Democratic Committee The New York State Democratic Committee is the affiliate of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Its headquarters are in Manhattan, and it has an office in Albany, New York, Alba ...

in 1945. In July 1948, she was appointed as a City Magistrate to fill a vacancy. In August 1949, she was appointed to a ten-year term as City Magistrate. In January 1950, she was appointed to the New York City Court of Special Sessions to fill a vacancy. In July 1950, she was appointed to a ten-year term on the Court of Special Sessions. She retired from the bench in 1965. She died on June 28, 1975, at her home in

Patchogue, New York Patchogue (, ) is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village in Suffolk County, New York. The population was 11,798 at the time of the 2010 census. Patchogue is part of the Town (New York), town of Brookhaven, New York, Brookhaven, on ...

.''DORIS I. BYRNE, 70, OF CRIMINAL COURT''
in ''The New York Times'' on June 29, 1975 (subscription required)

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrne, Doris I 1905 births 1975 deaths New York (state) state court judges Politicians from the Bronx Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly New York City Council members Women state legislators in New York (state) 20th-century American lawyers Women New York City Council members 20th-century American judges 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century American legislators