Preceded by none Nationality American Spouse(s) Edith Rowan Martin | Political party Democratic Party | |
Born October 3, 1878Watervliet, New York ( 1878-10-03 ) Children Edith Martin Burke, Francis W. Martin Jr. Books Darkness Falls: Rise of the Fallen | ||
Francis W. Martin (October 3, 1878 – June 1, 1947) was the first ever district attorney in Bronx County, New York and a judge on the New York Supreme Court from 1921 until his death.
Martin was born on October 3, 1878, to Dennis Martin and Catherine Martin née Keegan in Watervliet, New York, and grew up there. He graduated from New York Law School in 1902, and the following year moved 2150 University Avenue in the Bronx, where he lived the remainder of his life. In 1905 he became an Assistant Corporation Counsel for the New York City Law Department, and compiled such a good record in legal cases that when the Bronx was made a separate county, he received the backing of several bar groups, and perhaps more importantly, the Democratic party in the Bronx. In the first election for county-wide positions in the Bronx during November 1913, he won the election for Bronx County District Attorney, taking office on January 1, 1914 when the Bronx formally became a county. His initial salary was $10,00 per year.
Martin's record as district attorney was that of aggressive law enforcement, most notably against organized crime. In 1920, he stepped down from the district attorney's office to run for a judgeship position on the New York State Supreme Court, and won. In 1923, he was named to the Appellate Division by Governor Al Smith, and in 1934 he was re-elected as a justice. In 1935, he was appointed as Presiding Justice of the Appellate Division by Governor Herbert H. Lehman. Martin also served as a state delegate to the New York Constitutional Conventions of 1915 and 1938.
Martin died unexpectedly at home on June 1, 1947, and is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx.