Joseph Suozzi – the former Glen Cove mayor, Appellate Division justice, and law firm partner – died Sunday, at 95.

His survivors include his son Tom Suozzi, the Democratic nominee for New York's third Congressional district.

"He was a loving husband, father, grandfather of 14, and great grandfather of 4, a war hero, mayor and Judge…at true American success story," Suozzi said in a Tweet.

Joseph Suozzi leaves a legacy of public service.

"Judge Suozzi was a genuinely great American," Lois Schlissel, managing partner of Garden City-based Meyer Suozzi, English & Klein, where Suozzi was senior partner, said in a statement.

"A brave soldier, a learned jurist, a wise counselor and a dedicated father, he will be missed greatly and remembered always," she added.

Suozzi was the third of Glen Cove's City Court judges when at 28 he was elected in November 1949. He was then 28 years of age and was said to be the youngest judge elected or appointed in the United States.

Born in the village of Ruvo del Monte in the province of Potenza, Italy, Suozzi and his mother immigrated to the United States in 1925. They joined his father, Michele, who had preceded them to the United States, arriving here in 1913. Michele Suozzi had served in the U.S. Infantry and had become a naturalized citizen. As a result, Joseph Suozzi was a U.S. citizen.

Suozzi attended elementary and high school in Glen Cove and Oyster Bay. He volunteered as an Aviation Air Cadet before graudating from college. He then entered military service with the U.S. Air Force during World War II and became a navigator assigned to a B-24 bombing crew of the 15th Air Force. Based at Torretta Air Field in Cerignola, Italy, fewer than 50 miles from his birthplace, he completed 35 bombing missions in Austria, Yugoslavia, Germany, and Italy, for which he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters.

After graduating from Harvard Law School, Suozzi began practicing law in Glen Cove. He was elected to the bench of the City Court of Glen Cove in 1949 and re-elected in 1953. He resigned in September of 1955 to become a candidate for Mayor of Glen Cove and served as Mayor from 1956 until 1960.

In 1961 he was elected to a 14-year term as justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York. He was re-elected in 1974 for another term with bipartisan support. In 1976, Gov. Hugh Carey appointed him associate justice of the Appellate Division, Second Department. In 1980, he left the bench and resumed the practice of law as a senior partner at Meyer Suozzi.

Survivors include his wife of 63 years, Marguerite, and four children. His son Thomas R. Suozzi served as mayor of the City of Glen Cove and Nassau County executive. His daughter Rosemary Mancini Lloyd is a Unitarian minister and assistant pastor of the First Church of Boston. His son is Dr. William Suozzi, is a doctor of internal medicine, and his son Christopher Suozzi, an investment banker with Credit Suisse First Boston. He was predeceased by his eldest son, Joseph M. Suozzi, an attorney and accountant who was associated with Deutsche Bank in Europe.

Source: Joseph Suozzi, former judge, mayor, law firm partner, dies at 95 | Long Island Business News (libn.com)