The Honorable Raymond P. Fernandez ’08: Youngest Supreme Court Justice in NY State

Current Role: Acting Supreme Court Justice for the Supreme Court, Bronx County Civil Term
Major: B.A. Criminal Justice with a concentration in Law and Due Process
Graduate Degree: J.D. City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law 2012 
Hometown: East Harlem, NY
Career Aspiration: Lawyer/Judge

What was life like before John Jay?
It was very difficult. When I was born, my father was already married with four children, and my mother was 23 years old and heavily into drugs. She had been addicted to heroin since she was 13, and my father ran off with her and left his family. Then she got him into drugs. Having me was just one more problem in their lives. 

At one point, my father was a building superintendent, which meant we got to live in an apartment in the building. My mother, who was deep into her addiction, got a hold of his set of keys and started burglarizing the other apartments. Somebody caught on to what she was doing, and because of a law where the apartment was a condition of my father’s employment, we were thrown out and had to enter a family shelter. I was six years old and I remember it being a communal shelter. It was almost like a disaster relief situation with cots lined up in a large space. We put our personal belongings in a small locker and ate in the cafeteria. 

In the New York City shelter system, there was a curfew and you had to demonstrate that your children were in school. At that time, I had never been enrolled in school, which I guess somebody finally noticed. So, at six years old, I went straight into first grade. There was no daycare, pre-k, or kindergarten, for me, I just had to hit the ground running with all the other first graders.

What was your educational experience like before John Jay?
I seem to have this survival mechanism to find only the best people. It’s like I can sniff out good, genuine people to surround myself—including some incredible teachers, mentors, and friends. You’d be surprised what a little compliment can do for a child. Teachers always told me that I was very smart and those kind words boosted my confidence. I knew I didn’t want the life my parents had and I understood that my education was the one thing I could control. It was my ticket to a better life. 

Now, I have a son and daughter and sometimes I think about everything my wife and I do in the mornings to get them ready. When I was young, there was no one waking me up, picking out my clothes, putting sunscreen on me, making me breakfast, and packing my lunch. I had to do all that by myself. I had to be self-motivated to go to school and do my homework. No matter if it was raining outside or I wasn’t feeling well, I had to go to school because education was my route to a brighter future.

What sparked your passion for the law?
My mother would routinely get in trouble with the law. She would be picked up for simple possession or jumping a turnstile. Then she’d come home the same night after being arrested because a Legal Aid lawyer got her out. When we were living in Section 8 Housing—and my parents couldn’t be bothered to pay their portion, however small it was after the subsidy—the arrears would add up and there would be notice on the door that we were being dispossessed. Then a Legal Aid lawyer would step in and save the day. 

As a kid, I romanticized the notion of what a lawyer did. In a way, they were superheroes to me. Growing up, I lived with every kind of insecurity imaginable—food insecurity, housing insecurity, you name it. I was scared of the mailman because he’d bring notices, certified mail, and legal documents that could turn off the lights or throw us out of our apartment. After living in a shelter, I was terrified of going back there. It was the lawyers who gave a voice to the voiceless and made an impact by helping people. So, I set my mind on becoming a lawyer.

Why John Jay?
I looked at college as a fresh start and a way out—a place where no one knew me or who my parents were. I was looking forward to making my own schedule and picking out my own classes in what interested me, specifically criminal justice and the law. John Jay felt very safe on the west side of the City. The students were very serious and focused, which I liked. It also had this diversity of people which appealed to me. 

After I enrolled, I loved that I met people from all over the City. My small East Harlem neighborhood had become my world, but after coming to John Jay I met the first people in my life from Queens and Brooklyn. I gained a sense of autonomy taking the 6 train every day to 59th street and walking through the park. I’d walk past The Plaza, The Ritz Carlton, F.A.O. Schwarz, horse-drawn carriages, and famous people all the time. I loved that walk. 

Something I totally enjoyed about John Jay was that many different professionals taught the classes. I had a criminal justice class with a professor who was an NYPD sergeant. A warden taught my corrections class, a retired detective taught my police science course, and a practicing attorney was the professor for my constitutional law class. He focused on the 4th Amendment and basically taught search and seizure in this exceptionally interesting way. All of these professionals brought real-world experiences into their lectures and curriculum, which made the learning experience more engaging and memorable. 

How did your John Jay education impact your law school experience? 
When I got into John Jay, I knew it was the perfect school for me because it was a school of criminal justice. I had the same perfect-fit feeling with CUNY Law. It’s very well known for being public-interest oriented, and that’s exactly what I wanted. It was also extremely affordable compared to a private law school. Coming from John Jay, I went into every course with an open mind and strong critical thinking skills. As a John Jay student, I learned to see things through a justice-focused lens. I worked out how to take comprehensive notes, and I understood how to study and be a more serious student. Those skills got me through law school.

What did you do after graduating from law school?
Getting into law school was challenging for me because I struggled with the LSAT. At one point I made this promise with God, I said, “Just let me get in. Just give me a chance.” As a part of that promise, I said I’d help the most people that I could and give back. I took that promise very seriously and after graduation I worked at the Legal Aid Society in a criminal defense clinic. 

Yes, there are people who do very bad things, and that’s why the system and prisons exist, but I never had those clients. I had the everyday client who did something impulsive or idiotic that had consequences that could hurt their life. They were picked up for these small, petty, misdemeanor offenses and I had to fight to get them home so they could be with their children, go back to school, or even feed their dog that night. As the kid who worried about my mother coming home, this work meant a lot.

How did your mentors help shape your legal career?
After working at the Legal Aid Society, I became the Senior Law Clerk for the Honorable Jenny Rivera, Associate Judge for the New York Court of Appeals. She was very intense and had worked at Legal Aid herself. She was also my professor at CUNY Law. Her exams were hard and she had very high expectations. I was very fortunate that she took a liking to me and told me that I was a good writer. She recommended me for a scholarship, which really was the wind beneath my wings at law school and validation that that I belonged there. When Jenny was confirmed to the state’s highest court, I reached out to her to congratulate her. She wrote back and asked me to consider applying for a clerkship. I finished the application the very same night. To this day, I’ve never seen anyone work as hard as Jenny. She’d work early mornings and late nights dedicated to her craft. Working for her, I learned to never leave a stone unturned.

Another one of my mentors is the Honorable Joseph A. Zayas, Chief Administrative Judge of the New York State Unified Court System. I actually appeared in front of Judge Zayas as a public defender on a case before I clerked for Jenny. When I was done clerking for Jenny, I sat down with him to discuss my career trajectory. He shared with me that we had very similar backgrounds. His father suffered from mental illness and he had a difficult upbringing. It meant a lot to me that he had ascended so high even with the obstacles that he faced. When I told him that I wanted to become a judge, he said, “Here’s what you do,” and he gave me the blueprint. 

What did it mean to you to become a judge?
Everything I’ve done has been sort of a long shot—from getting through high school, to trying to get into college, to getting through college, and getting into law school. To be a judge in the State of New York, you have to be a practicing attorney for a minimum of 10 years. I got it into my head to reach that goal in 10 years. When I’d tell people I was going to be a judge, they’d say, “That’s nice,” and look at me like I was a kid dreaming about becoming an astronaut. When I encountered a naysayer, I’d just say I understood their points, but stayed focused on my goal. 

Before I hit my 10 years of practicing law, I submitted my application. When the screening panel interviewed me, it was 25 days after the anniversary of my 10th year of admission. Then I got a call to be fingerprinted and have a background check. All of my connections said that was a good sign, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up. Then, the governor’s office called me. I was appointed to the bench at 37 years old. 

After the appointment, my family and I went up to Albany for the State Senate to vote on my confirmation. Before we went, I made the decision to tell my story when I testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee. I didn’t often speak publicly about my upbringing, but it was important for them to know where I came from and why I was passionate about the law. Later, many senators spoke on my behalf, said very kind words about my career, and enthusiastically supported my candidacy. Before the official vote was in, whenever somebody tried to congratulate me, I said, “No, we play to the buzzer. It’s not over until all the votes are in.” When the gavel finally came down, that was it, I was a judge. It was absolutely surreal sitting there with my wife in the Senate Chamber. It was a very special moment in my life. I’ll be chasing that feeling for some time.

What is it like being a judge?
I celebrated two years on the bench this past June. Every day has been exceptionally rewarding. I’m exactly where I wanted to be, doing exactly what I wanted to do. At 39, I’m still the youngest Supreme Court Justice in the entire State of New York. I still have the same mentally I had when I was working at the Legal Aid Society. I want to touch the lives of whoever is in my courtroom. I always want to bring a certain sense of decorum and fairness in my courtroom. I know that I can’t have an off day. 

I sit in civil term, so I see a lot of personal injury actions. If you get hurt, your whole life can be completely off course. People are in court because the worst thing in their lives has happened to them. Typically, not too many people are happy to see me because something bad happened to them. If they’re there for a wrongful death case, they lost someone special to them, maybe a parent or a child. Some people are in my court because they’ve been involuntarily committed to a hospital because of suspected mental illness. These situations are very difficult and that’s not lost on me. I’m just trying to be thoughtful, intentional, and just in my rulings.

What advice do you have for students hoping to follow in your footsteps?
Focus on the task in front of you. If you think about too many steps ahead, you can get lost. If you’re an undergrad, focus on getting good grades right now. If you get straight A’s you can go to law school, medical school, or anywhere you want. Imagine that you have to read your transcript out loud, because that’s what’s going to happen at an admissions panel. They’re going to read your grades out loud. Just by having the right academic background, you’ll open a lot of doors for yourself.

Please finish this sentence: Because of John Jay…
Because of John Jay, I found direction—and the strength to turn pain into purpose.