[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 31 (Tuesday, February 28, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S1086]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                    REMEMBERING JUDGE ROGER J. MINER

 Mrs. GILLIBRAND. Mr. President, today I wish to honor a truly 
brilliant and dedicated jurist who served New York and the Nation as a 
public servant his entire life. On Saturday, February 18, 2012, I was 
heartbroken to learn that my mentor and friend, Judge Roger J. Miner, a 
U.S. Court of Appeals judge for the Second Circuit, passed away of 
natural causes in his home in Hudson, NY.
  I was extremely fortunate to have had the privilege to work with 
Judge Miner as a law clerk, when he served in the Northern District of 
New York. I cherished his confidence and support in all my endeavors 
and I feel blessed to have been able to call him a personal friend and 
mentor. He not only taught me clear legal analysis, but also inspired 
me with his integrity, fairness, and great love of public service. I 
will always remember his generosity, kindness and great intellect that 
taught me so much.
  Born in Hudson, Judge Miner received his bachelor's degree from State 
University of New York at Albany and his law degree from New York Law 
School with honors in 1956, where he served as managing editor of the 
Law Review.
  Judge Miner was admitted to practice in New York and in the U.S. 
Court of Military Appeals in 1956. Serving on active military duty from 
1956 to 1959, Judge Miner was awarded the Commendation Ribbon with 
Medal Pendant for his work on the revision of the Manual for Courts-
Martial. He was admitted to the Bar of the Republic of Korea in 1958. 
Judge Miner later was honorably discharged in October 1964 with the 
rank of captain in the Judge Advocate General's Corps, in the U.S. Army 
Reserve.
  Judge Miner wrote Ohio State Law Journal Volume 67 in 2006 where he 
describes his defense of a person he believes to be the last civilian 
tried by court martial. The trial was conducted in Korea in 1958 during 
Judge Miner's service as an officer in the Judge Advocate General's 
Corps of the U.S. Army. Although a challenge to the jurisdiction of the 
court martial was rejected and the civilian defendant's conviction was 
set aside for another reason at trial--the Supreme Court ultimately 
decided that courts-martial have no jurisdiction over civilians. This 
development also led to the passage of the Military Extraterritorial 
Jurisdiction Act to allow for prosecution in U.S. District Courts of 
civilians employed by or accompanying the Armed Forces overseas.
  After leaving active duty, he returned to Hudson, NY, to practice law 
with his father, and served as the city's corporation counsel from 1961 
to 1964.
  Judge Miner served as an assistant district attorney of Columbia 
County, and soon after became district attorney of Columbia County 
until 1975. The following year, he was elected as justice of the New 
York State Supreme Court, Third Judicial District, where he served for 
five years.
  Judge Miner was nominated in 1981 by President Ronald Reagan to the 
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York. In 1985, 
President Reagan promoted Judge Miner to the U.S. Court of Appeals for 
the Second Circuit, where he served for nearly three decades.
  Judge Miner was one of three finalists considered to fill a seat on 
the U.S. Supreme Court in the late 1980s, but ultimately was not 
nominated because he openly supported a woman's right to choose. As his 
wife Jacqueline has recalled she urged him to lie and say he was 
opposed to choice. He said, ``My reputation is too big a price to pay 
for a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court.'' This is an example of one of 
the many courageous choices he made throughout his life, where he put 
his integrity and what was right ahead of personal ambition or 
political expediency.
  Judge Miner was an adjunct professor for his alma mater, New York Law 
School, and for Albany Law School. He also served as a member of the 
board of trustees of the Practicing Law Institute. He held honorary 
degrees from New York Law School, Albany Law School, and Syracuse 
University.
  Judge Miner is survived by his wonderful wife of 36 years Jacqueline, 
four sons, Larry, Ronald, Ralph, and Mark; his brother Lance, six 
grandchildren, a nephew and a niece, and his extended family. My 
thoughts and prayers are with his family.
  Mr. President, I ask all members of this esteemed body to join me as 
we honor the life and legacy of Judge Roger J. Miner. Our country has 
lost a great leader, and a fine jurist who will be deeply missed in New 
York and across the Nation.

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