Gino Papa, a longtime East Hills village prosecutor and justice whose legal career also included stints as an assistant Nassau County district attorney and chief deputy North Hempstead town attorney, died Monday. He was 84.
“It’s bittersweet. He went in his sleep at St. Francis [Hospital], a place he loved. They treated us amazingly,” said his son, CJ Papa, of Manhasset, an anchor with Fios1 News Long Island and SportsNet New York.
“It’s sad he’s gone, but there were people around him who loved him,” CJ said. “He went on his terms.”
Papa, an East Hills resident since 1962, had recently announced he would not seek a third four-year term as village justice in the upcoming March 18 election.
Prior to his election as village justice, Papa was the village’s acting village justice and a village prosecutor for 22 years.
Mitchell Studley, the village’s acting justice and a partner at the Jamaica, Queens firm DeBrosse & Studley, LLP, will run to succeed Papa on the Unity Party line.
“Gino was a true mentor,” said Studley, who said he knew Papa for more than 25 years. “I learned to appreciate the kind manner in which he dispensed justice. There was never a sense of arrogance or disrespect ever exhibited by him toward any individual who came before him in the East Hills court.”
Papa immigrated to the United States from Italy in 1934 and attended the Roslyn Public Schools, Hofstra University and the St. John’s University School of Law. He also served in the United States Army during the Korean War.
From 1964-71, he was an assistant Nassau County district attorney, and later served 2 1/2 years as the chief deputy attorney within the Town of North Hempstead.
Papa was admitted to practice law in all federal courts, the Eastern and Southern districts of New York, and within the Court of Appeals.
In his legal career, Papa was president of the Nassau County Magistrate Association from 1994-95 and was a recipient of its Distinguished Service Award. He has also received the Hon. Frank J. Santagata Memorial Award for Outstanding Devotion to the Law.
“He’s from the old school, where morals matter and your reputation matters,” said East Hills Trustee Brian Meyerson, who prior to his appointment to the village board last year was a village prosecutor. “When I first came on as a prosecutor, he welcomed me with open arms. He showed me the ropes, was never standoffish or anything. He was a mentor for the legal profession and for myself.”
CJ said his father “was always committed to making me who I am,” and attended nearly every soccer, basketball and baseball game he played in growing up, even as he played soccer and golf as a student at New York University.
He also said his father’s fairness as a judge has been a quality he has tried to exude in his journalism career.
“I try and treat the stories I do very fairly. Each person’s going to have a side, I can’t take a side, and I think I got that from him,” CJ said. “He was always very composed and I think that helps me when I do television. The red light goes on and I’m relaxed, an even keel.”
The East Hills village board on Feb. 11 presented Papa with its Award of Distinction, its highest community service honor.
A plaque presented to Papa during the ceremony describes the justice as “an outstanding and exceptional member in the legal profession,” and is also inscribed: “Gino Papa possesses the finest personal attributes of compassion, candor, fairness and integrity.”
“At the ceremony, he made a wonderful comment that he knew the village would be in good hands in passing the baton to me, I was so taken and moved. Here we were honoring him, and he thought enough to make this wonderful comment about me. It just showed how good-hearted and the kind of individual he was,” Studley said. “As a fellow judge in the Village of East Hills and as a neighbor and a friend, I’ll miss him dearly.”
Added Village of East Hills Mayor Michael Koblenz, himself a former federal prosecutor: “I’m happy he was able to be there for that. I know he was happy to be there.”
Papa was predeceased by his wife Helen. The couple had four children: Daughters Gina, Linda and Monica and son CJ. The Papas had five grandchildren.
Wake services for Papa will take place from 2-5 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. Friday at Roslyn Heights Funeral Home at 75 Mineola Avenue in Roslyn Heights. A viewing was also held Wednesday.
A funeral service will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at Holy Name of Jesus Church in Woodbury, located at 690 Woodbury Road.
