Israel Leo Glasser (born April 6, 1924), also known as I. Leo Glasser or Leo Glasser, is a
senior United States district judge
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...
of the
.
Education and career
Born in
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 ...
,
New York on April 6, 1924,
Glasser graduated from the
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a public university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York City. Founded in 1847, Cit ...
in 1943 and then served in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
in Europe during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. He was awarded the
Bronze Star
The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone.
Wh ...
for bravery during his service in the European theater. Upon returning from the war, Glasser obtained a law degree from
Brooklyn Law School
Brooklyn Law School (BLS) is a private law school in New York City. Founded in 1901, it has approximately 1,100 students. Brooklyn Law School's faculty includes 60 full-time faculty, 15 emeriti faculty, and a number of adjunct faculty.
Brookly ...
in 1948, and then immediately began teaching at the school. He served on the faculty until 1969, when he was appointed a judge of the
New York Family Court
The Family Court of the State of New York is a specialized court of the New York State Unified Court System located in each county of the state.Constitution of the State of New York Article VI, § 13 The New York City Family Court is the name giv ...
. For years, Glasser lectured to thousands of law students preparing for the New York
Bar Exam
A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction.
Australia
Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associat ...
on virtually all subjects covered on the bar exam.
He returned to Brooklyn Law School in 1977 to serve as its dean, a position he held until 1981 when he was nominated for the federal bench.
Federal judicial service
Glasser was nominated by President
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
on November 23, 1981, to a seat on the
vacated by Judge
Jacob Mishler. He was confirmed by the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
on December 9, 1981, and received commission on December 10, 1981. He assumed
senior status
Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...
on July 1, 1993.
Notable cases
Glasser has presided over several high-profile trials during his tenure, the most notable of which was the trial of mobster
John Gotti. The prosecutor in that case,
John Gleeson, would also go on to serve on the Eastern District federal bench. Judge Glasser also presided over an early
terrorism
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
trial involving an organization dubbed "The Ohio Five" and presided over a number of other significant organized crime trials and proceedings including the conviction of
Vincent Gigante
Vincent Louis Gigante (; March 28, 1928 – December 19, 2005), also known as "The Chin", was an American mobster who was boss of the Genovese crime family in New York City from 1981 to 2005. Gigante started out as a professional boxer who fough ...
, the head of the
Genovese crime family
The Genovese crime family, () also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American M ...
.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Glasser, I. Leo
1924 births
Living people
United States Army personnel of World War II
Brooklyn Law School alumni
City College of New York alumni
Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
Deans of law schools in the United States
United States district court judges appointed by Ronald Reagan
20th-century American judges
Brooklyn Law School faculty
Deans of Brooklyn Law School
21st-century American judges
United States Army soldiers