By Nelson A. King
Several Brooklyn legislators
and community leaders
have strongly condemned what
they described as “vicious and
unfounded allegations” levelled
against Haitian American Judge
Dweynie Esther Paul, a frontrunner
in the Kings County
Surrogate’s Court race, and her
deceased mother.
Leaders expressing outrage
over the attacks included Congresswoman
Yvette D. Clarke,
City Council Majority Leader
Laurie Cumbo, Senators Kevin
Parker and Roxanne J. Persaud;
New York State Assembly Members
Nick Perry, Latrice Walker,
Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn,
Jaime Williams, Mathylde Frontus,
Stefani Zinerman; Council
Members Alicka Ampry-Samuel,
Farah N. Louis, Robert Cornegy,
Mark Treyger and Justin Brannan;
District Leaders Annette
Robinson and Henry Butler; and
members of the clergy, Pastor
Shaun J. Lee and the Rev. Al
Cockfield.
Last Monday, the New York
Daily News reported that Judge
Paul, a civil court judge, “has
been dogged by lawsuit allegations
Caribbean L 14 ife, MARCH 12-18, 2021
that she cheated a home
care worker hired to help her
mother out of $264,000 in wages
and overtime.”
Paul — the daughter of Haitian
immigrants and one of two
candidates to replace retiring
Surrogate Court Judge Margarita
Lopez Torres — has denied
the charges, according to the
Daily News.
It said, though the lawsuit
was settled for an undisclosed
amount in 2017, “the allegations
have resurfaced in an online article
and on social media — right
in the middle of her campaign.”
Judge Paul, 43, has said the
employee never worked for her,
but for her late mother, according
to the Daily News.
“Paul’s accomplishments on
and off the bench demonstrate
her character, integrity, compassion
and fairness,” said Perry,
who represents the 58th Assembly
District. “No longer will
the estates of low income and
minority individuals be treated
as income creators for a select
group of wealthy lawyers.”
Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican
immigrants, who represents
the 9th Congressional District,
said she found it “truly disturbing
that, despite the harm we’ve
all experienced in this era of
misinformation, deception and
distraction, we continue to see
these tactics weaponized and
brandished to derail, destroy and
deter women from seeking to
serve the public.
“As Black women seek to
advance, especially in public
service, I’ve noticed an alarming
trend: the impugning of their
character by accusations largely
unrelated to their duties,” said
Clarke, who heads the Brooklyn
Black Elected Officials Coalition.
“This is a harmful and divisive
practice that must cease immediately.
“Judge Dweynie Esther Paul
has diligently served our beloved
city, and I am confident she will
continue to do so,” she added.
“Judge Paul, currently a civil
court judge and George Washington
University Law School
graduate, was found qualified by
Judge Dweynie Esther Paul. Roman Vail Photography
an independent judicial screening
panel, composed of practicing
lawyers from various bar
associations.”
Judge Paul said she was “deeply
saddened that an unfounded
allegation filed against my
deceased mother targeting me
is being used to assassinate my
character.
“It was my duty to protect my
elderly mother,” she said. “A family
decision was made to resolve
the case in an effort to allow us
to enjoy our time with her until
she passed in 2019 with dementia.
This matter was disclosed
in detail to the judicial screening
panel. I never employed the
complainant.”
Brooklyn politcians condemn racist
attacks on Haitian American jurist
See maspethfederal.com for more information.
/maspethfederal.com
