Name Barry Kamins | Role Judge | |
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Education Columbia College of Columbia University in the City of New York | ||
Ethics Case Study: Judge Kamins & D.A. Hynes
Barry Kamins is a New York City Criminal Court Judge as well as an adjunct professor at the Fordham University School of Law and Brooklyn Law School.
Contents
- Ethics Case Study Judge Kamins DA Hynes
- Education
- Legal career
- Judicial service
- 2014 Department of Investigation Report
- References
Education
Kamins received his bachelor's degree from Columbia College in 1965 and his Juris Doctor degree in 1968 from Rutgers School of Law—Newark. He is a graduate of Brooklyn Technical High School.
Legal career
Kamins served as an Assistant District Attorney in Kings County from 1969 to 1973 where he rose to the rank of Deputy Chief of the Criminal Court Bureau. Following his time at the District Attorney's Office, Kamins left to become a criminal defense lawyer in Brooklyn at the law firm of Flamhaft, Levy, Kamins, Hirsch & Rendeiro LLP. During his time in private practice, Kamins represented numerous lawyers and judges probed by the Appellate Division's disciplinary committee.
In 2006, Kamins was elected president of the New York City Bar Association for a two-year term. Kamins became the first president of the City Bar with a law practice based outside of Manhattan in the association's 136-year history.
As a professor with the Fordham University School of Law and Brooklyn Law School, Kamins teaches courses on New York Criminal Procedure, and has authored numerous articles and publications, including New York Search & Seizure (1991).
Judicial service
In 2008, Kamins was appointed to the New York City Criminal Court by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. In 2009, his term was renewed until 2018. In 2009, Kamins was transferred from Manhattan to the Kings County Criminal Term after Chief Administrative Judge Ann Pfau appointed Kamins the Administrative Judge for Criminal Matters.
2014 Department of Investigation Report
In a June 2014 report, the New York City Department of Investigation accused Kamins of violating the Code of Judicial Conduct by giving ex-Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes political and legal advice and by discussing cases being prosecuted by the District Attorney's office. Kamins was relieved of all administrative duties pending resolution of the investigation. In the 27-page report, the DOI said Kamins shed his mandated neutrality when he “engaged in political activity by a sitting judge.”
Kamins was temporarily returned to duty as a Supreme Court Justice in Queens County in July 2014.
Kamins agreed to retire, effective December 1, 2014, under a stipulation with the state Commission on Judicial Conduct, ending both his judicial career and the Commission's investigation.