Judge Alvin Hellerstein Dies at 92 After Decades of High-Profile Rulings

Alvin K. Hellerstein, a federal judge in Manhattan whose docket included the cases of President Donald Trump, former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and the victims of the 9/11 attacks, has died. He was 92. Edward Friedland, the district executive for the Southern District of New York federal courts, confirmed the death on Wednesday. No cause of death was released.

Hellerstein was appointed to the federal bench by President Bill Clinton in 1998. He served as a federal district judge until 2011, when he assumed senior status. He maintained an active caseload until his final days. Two weeks before his death, he presided over the arraignment of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. They faced new torture charges added to their existing narco-terrorism conspiracy case.

Maduro was captured in Caracas earlier this year in a U.S. military raid. He twice refused Hellerstein’s request to enter a plea. The judge then entered a not guilty plea on Maduro’s behalf, stating, “a plea of not guilty will be entered on behalf of Mr. Maduro.”

In August, Hellerstein issued a ruling rejecting Trump’s bid to move his state court hush money conviction to federal court. Trump sought dismissal based on presidential immunity. This was the third time Hellerstein denied such a request. The first denial followed Trump’s 2023 indictment. The second came after the 2024 conviction and a Supreme Court ruling on official acts. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had ordered a reconsideration after finding Hellerstein erred by not considering “important issues relevant” to the request, though the appeals judges expressed no view on the outcome.

Hellerstein also ruled in 2020 that the Justice Department acted in retaliation by revoking Michael Cohen’s home confinement to stop him from publishing a book. The judge found the move violated the First Amendment. Cohen, a former Trump lawyer, was released from prison following that order.

His legacy was shaped by the post-9/11 litigation. He oversaw dozens of lawsuits involving wrongful death and property damage for two decades. He met with victims in his chambers and rejected low settlement offers. In 2010, he rejected a $575 million settlement for those ill from toxic ash. He noted, “This is different. This is 9/11.”

Hellerstein previously served in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps and as a Manhattan litigator. He was known for strict courtroom discipline and required spectators to wear masks for more than two years after other judges ended the practice.