Melvin Howard Miller (July 24, 1939 – March 8, 2019) was an American lawyer and politician.

Life

Miller was born on July 24, 1939, in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He graduated from

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...

in 1961 and the

New York University School of Law The New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it was the first law school established in New York City and is the oldest survivin ...

in 1964. Following his admission to the New York bar later that year, he became a member of the

New York County Lawyers Association The New York County Lawyers Association (NYCLA) is a bar association located in New York City. The New York County Lawyers Association was founded in 1908 because the existing bar association excluded some lawyers from membership due to their ra ...

. He also taught at the

CUNY Graduate Center The Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York (CUNY Graduate Center) is a public research institution and postgraduate university in New York City. Formed in 1961 as Division of Graduate Studies at City University ...

and at the

John Jay College of Criminal Justice The John Jay College of Criminal Justice (John Jay) is a public college focused on criminal justice and located in New York City. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY). John Jay was founded as the only liberal arts col ...

. He was a Democratic 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 Ass ...

representing

Kings County Kings County or King's County may refer to: Places Canada *Kings County, New Brunswick *Kings County, Nova Scotia * Kings County, Prince Edward Island ** King's County (electoral district), abolished in 1892 Ireland * County Offaly, formerly call ...

from 1971 to 1991, and sat in the 179th, 180th, 181st, 182nd, 183rd, 184th, 185th, 186th, 187th, 188th and

189th New York State Legislature The 189th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 9, 1991, to December 31, 1992, during the ninth and tenth years of Mario Cuomo's governorship, in Albany. Backgr ...

s. He was

Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...

from 1987 to 1991. He was responsible for the Fiscal Reform Act of 1990.

Conviction

Upon being convicted on 8 out of 19

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...

charges in the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York (in case citations, E.D.N.Y.) is the United States district court, federal district court whose territorial jurisdiction spans five List of counties in New York, counties in ...

, he lost the speakership on December 13, 1991 and was replaced by majority leader James R. Tallon as acting speaker until the election of

Saul Weprin Saul Weprin (August 5, 1927 – February 11, 1994) was an American attorney and politician. He was a United States Democratic Party, Democratic member from Queens County, New York, Queens County of the New York State Assembly, and served as its ...

to the speakership on December 16, 1991. In the case, which did not involve his work in government, Miller and his Assembly aide and onetime law partner, Jay Adolf, were charged with cheating legal clients out of some of the profits from investments in cooperative apartments. They acknowledged receiving a total of about $250,000 in three deals, but denied defrauding clients. The

jury A jury is a sworn body of people (jurors) convened to hear evidence, make Question of fact, findings of fact, and render an impartiality, impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a sentence (law), penalty or Judgmen ...

convicted each defendant of six charges of

fraud In law, fraud is intent (law), intentional deception to deprive a victim of a legal right or to gain from a victim unlawfully or unfairly. Fraud can violate Civil law (common law), civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrato ...

, one of

conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a secret plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivat ...

and one of using an assumed name, all involving one scheme to secretly buy and resell eight apartments in a Brooklyn building. The jury found that they had deprived their clients of the right to buy the apartments and receive the profits. Under New York State law, any member of the state legislature convicted of a felony is automatically expelled. Miller immediately lost his seat in the Assembly and position as speaker.''Miller Is Found Guilty of Fraud; Speaker Loses Seat in Assembly''
in the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' on December 14, 1991

Reversal

In 1993, Miller's convictions were overturned on appeal.

Later career

He was widely recognized as an authority on public finance and the state budgetary process, and as one of the founders of Bolton St Johns, he served as senior consultant to the firm.

Death

He died in Manhattan from lung cancer on March 8, 2019.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Mel 1939 births 2019 deaths Brooklyn College alumni Deaths from lung cancer in New York (state) New York University alumni Speakers of the New York State Assembly Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly Politicians from Brooklyn 20th-century members of the New York State Legislature