197: Judge Patricia DiMango KNOWS Responsibility, Humanity, Humor & How to Honor Life After Death

Justice Patricia M. DiMango serves as one of three judges on Amazon Freevee's Tribunal Justice, created by Judge Judy Sheindlin. Most recently, Justice DiMango was a judge on the Emmy-nominated series, "Hot Bench."

Justice DiMango was first appointed to serve as a Judge of the Criminal Courts for the City of New York by Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. She became the first Italian-American woman ever appointed to that position. Thereafter, she was elected to the New York State Supreme Court bench in the 2nd and 11th Judicial Districts, and again was the first Italian-American woman elected to that position.

Justice DiMango's reputation was that of a stern but fair judge combined with a balance of street smarts and legal knowledge. In the course of her judicial career she gained public recognition for handling high-profile trials, particularly those involving murders of young children, other crimes against children and hate-crime murders. She was also recognized for handling large volumes of serious felony cases from their arraignment through trial. Justice DiMango became further known for her efficiency in closing a vast number of cases in a fair and timely fashion. Her judicial acumens came to the attention of the Chief Judge of the State of New York and selected her to spearhead his initiative to reduce the backlog of felony matters in the Bronx. This initiative garnered front-page coverage in The New York Times. These assignments resulted in her appointment to the position of Administrative Judge of the New York State Supreme Court, Criminal Term, Brooklyn, Kings County.

Upon her graduation from college, Justice DiMango was an elementary school teacher in the New York City Public Schools, focusing on special education of children with emotional and cognitive needs. During her teaching years and before law school, she received her Master's Degree. In addition to her Juris Doctorate, Justice DiMango holds a Master's Degree from Columbia University in Developmental Psychology and a Bachelor's Degree cum laude from Brooklyn College in both Psychology and Education. 

Thereafter, she went on to receive her law degree from St. John's University where she graduated in the top of her class, and received awards and scholarships in recognition for her other academic achievements.

In 2012, she received the Alumna of the Year Award from Brooklyn College and was also the recipient of the prestigious Rapallo Award. In 2013, she was the recipient of the Distinguished Judiciary Award from the Catholic Lawyers Guild and was named "Woman of the Year" by the New York State Supreme Court Officers Association. In 2014, she was named "Woman of the Year" by The New York State Court Officers Association. Additionally, she served as Master of Ceremonies for the NY State Broadcasters Association Awards. In 2015, Justice DiMango was the Grand Marshal of the Brooklyn Columbus Day Parade. She was also recognized as being the "Woman Of The Year" for the Home Reporter and Brooklyn Spectator's "Kings of Kings" event. Justice DiMango was also the honored celebrity speaker at The Greater New York Dental Association National Convention. 

In 2016, she was named "Woman of The Year" by the Italian Charities of America. In 2019, Justice DiMango was selected to be the keynote speaker by the Brooklyn Daily Eagle for its "Champions of Justice" event honoring outstanding women in the court system.

Justice DiMango has appeared on numerous television programs, including "The View," "Wendy Williams," "Rachael Ray" and "Steve Harvey" and can be heard on many talk radio shows and podcasts. She has also been featured giving legal insight on stories on "Entertainment Tonight," Fox News, "VH1," "Banfield" and "Inside Edition" among others.

Upon her graduation from law school, she served five-and-a-half years as an Assistant District Attorney in the Kings County District Attorney's Office. During her tenure there, she was give