ROCHESTER JUDGE PATRICIA MARKS RECEIVES STATE
BAR’S EXCELLENCE IN PUBLIC SERVICE AWARD
Marks cited for instrumental leadership in
creating veterans’ and mental health courts
NEW YORK—Hon. Patricia D. Marks, the presiding judge of the
Judicial Diversion Program Court and the Monroe County Veterans Court,
was honored with the Excellence in Public Service Award from the New
York State Bar Association on January 26 during its Annual Meeting at
the Hilton New York in Manhattan. The award, sponsored by the Committee
on Attorneys in Public Service, recognizes individuals who demonstrate a
“higher calling” in government through their extraordinary
commitment to service, honor and integrity in the public sector.
The committee honored Judge Marks for her innovative work to improve
the Monroe County court system. As the tireless leader of the community
team that created the Monroe County Veterans Court, only the second such
court in New York, Marks helped create a system that sensitively
addresses the special needs of combat veterans charged with crimes. She
also played a key role in establishing the Monroe County Mental Health
Court.
“Whether it’s advocating for causes that serve the public
good, addressing the special needs of our citizens in court, or
upholding the highest standards of the legal profession, this
year’s recipients of our Excellence in Public Service Awards make
a difference each day in the lives of New Yorkers,” said New York
State Bar Association President Michael E. Getnick (Getnick Livingston
Atkinson & Priore, LLP of Utica and of counsel to Getnick &
Getnick of New York City). “The State Bar is proud to recognize
their fine work, and I congratulate Judge Patricia Marks for winning
this honor.”
Other recipients this year were Diane Bosse of Buffalo, chair of the
New York State Board of Law Examiners; and Peter H. Schiff of Albany,
senior counsel to the solicitor general’s office.
Marks is the presiding judge of the Judicial Diversion Program Court
and the Monroe County Veterans Court. She currently serves as
supervising judge for the criminal courts in the seventh judicial
district and has been an elected County Court Judge for Monroe County
since 1985. She previously served as the presiding judge of the
Rochester Drug Treatment Court, and the Monroe County Mental Health
Court.
“Judge Marks’s record of judicial excellence begins with
her work as a distinguished jurist and continues with her extraordinary
public service. She is the consummate professional who has had a
profound impact on the community through her efforts to address the
special needs of veterans and people with mental health issues,”
said Committee Chair Hon. Peter S. Loomis of Albany (New York State
Department of Transportation). “We are pleased to recognize Judge
Marks for her selfless dedication to some of our society’s most
vulnerable citizens.”
A graduate of Vassar College and Albany Law School, Marks is a past
president of the New York State County Courts Association. She serves as
co-chair of the New York State Criminal Jury Instructions Committee and
is a member on several committees to improve the court system including
Pretrial Services Corporation, Legal Links, Public Safety Sector TQM
Committee and Mental Health and the Courts and EDP response team
advisory committee.
Last year’s award recipients were Anthony J. Annucci of Albany,
executive deputy commissioner, New York State Department of Correctional
Services; and Denise E. O’Donnell of Buffalo, deputy secretary for
public safety and commissioner, New York State Division of Criminal
Justice Services.
Founded in 1876, the 77,000-member New York State Bar Association is
the official statewide organization of lawyers in New York and the
largest voluntary state bar association in the nation. The State
Bar’s programs and activities have continuously served the public
and improved the justice system for more than 130 years.
###
| 
News Center
