Melanie L. Cradle is a Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court.

Melanie L. Cradle
Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court
Assumed office
August 2020
Appointed byNed Lamont
Preceded byRobert J. Devlin Jr.
Judge of the Connecticut Superior Court
In office
2013 – August 2020
Appointed byDannel Malloy
Personal details
Born1970 or 1971 (age 53–54)[1]
ResidenceDurham, Connecticut
EducationAdelphi University (BA)
Seton Hall University (JD)

Education

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Cradle earned her bachelor's degree from Adelphi University in 1993, and her Juris Doctor from Seton Hall University School of Law in 1998.[1][2]

Judicial career

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Connecticut superior court

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Cradle was appointed to the superior court by Governor Dannel Malloy in 2013.[3][2] She has heard criminal cases in Bridgeport for a year before moving to the New Haven Judicial District in 2014. In 2015, she became the presiding judge in GA 23 in New Haven. Cradle also serves on the Law Library Advisory Committee, the Rules Committee of the Superior Court, and the Criminal Justice Commission.[1]

Connecticut Appellate Court

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On July 20, 2020, Governor Ned Lamont announced the appointment of Cradle to the Connecticut Appellate Court to the seat being vacated by Judge Robert J. Devlin Jr. who reaches mandatory retirement age in April 2020. Upon her appointment, Judge Cradle will become the first African-American woman to serve on the Appellate Court.[1]

Memberships

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Cradle has served as a member of the National College of District Attorneys, the National Association of Black Prosecutors, the Ansonia/Milford Multidisciplinary Team, and the State of Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice Diversity Committee. She was also a mentor for the Lawyers Collaborative for Diversity.[1]

Personal

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At her original confirmation hearing, Cradle noted that her parents married in 1967, the year when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down laws prohibiting interracial marriage in Loving v. Virginia, the state where her father lived before entering the U.S. Army. Her parents met while her father was a serviceman overseas.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Governor Lamont Makes Supreme and Appellate Court Appointments" (Press release). July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Gov. Malloy Nominates Middlefield Resident to Superior Court". Durham-Middlefield, CT Patch. January 25, 2013. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Lamont nominates Christine E. Keller to Supreme Court". The CT Mirror. July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
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Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court
(Designate)

2020–present
Incumbent