Paul Balsam (July 19, 1905 – December 22, 1972) was a justice of the

New York State Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...

from January 1, 1965, until his death in 1972. He was born, and raised in

Ozone Park, Queens Ozone Park is a neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City boroughs of New York City, borough of Queens, New York (state), New York, United States. It is next to the Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone ...

. After graduating from the

Brooklyn Law School Brooklyn Law School (BLS) is a Private university, 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 adjunct faculty. ...

in 1928. Balsam worked for several law firms as an attorney, he held several positions for

New York State New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...

and

City A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

, including Assistant

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

(a position he held for seven years). In 1943, he was an Assistant

District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

for Queens County and Queens County Tax Commissioner. In 1947, Mayor William O'Dwyer appointed him as a City Magistrate, from then until his death, Judge Balsam served on the bench of several courts, including the Family Court for over ten years and, the New York State Supreme Court for eight years. In 1968, Justice Balsam presided at the trial in which Herman B. Ferguson and Arthur Harris were convicted of conspiring to murder civil rights leader Whitney M. Young, Jr., as part of what was described as a "black revolutionary plot." Balsam was active in numerous charitable organizations, including the Ozone Park Jewish Center and the

Queens Jewish Center The Queens Jewish Center, also known as Queens Jewish Center and Talmud Torah or QJC, is an Orthodox synagogue in Forest Hills, Queens, New York City, New York, United States. The synagogue was established by a dozen families in 1943 to serve ...

. He was the son of

Isaac Isaac ( ; ; ; ; ; ) is one of the three patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baháʼí Faith. Isaac first appears in the Torah, in wh ...

and Sarah (Eisig) Balsam. In 1931, he married Caroline Sager (November 13, 1908 - September 17, 2005). They had two children, Joel and Alan, an attorney and a physician, respectively, and nine grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balsm, Paul 1905 births 1972 deaths New York Supreme Court justices Brooklyn Law School alumni 20th-century New York state court judges People from Ozone Park, Queens