Longtime Red Bank resident, former mayor, municipal attorney, assistant county prosecutor and NJ State Superior Court judge, the Hon. Benedict Robert Nicosia, passed away peacefully at home on July 9. He was 101.
Photo/family via Thompson Memorial Home
On the personal side,
Loved ones of the Hon. Benedict “Ben” Nicosia in his obituary
“Ben was an avid golfer, amateur cook, and author of a cookbook of family recipes.”
Born to Robert Nicosia and Anna Crotenuto Nicosia in Brooklyn, NY, Judge Nicosia lived in Red Bank since 1923. He attended the Red Bank school system and earned a reputation as a lightweight boxer in his teenage years.
In 1942 he enlisted in the U.S. Army Signal Corp and served in England during World War II. After the war, he graduated with a B.A. from Rutgers University and an L.L.B. from Rutgers School of Law. He was then admitted to the New Jersey Bar, and joined the Quinn, Doremus, McCue, and Russell law firm.
Judge Nicosia was a member and trustee of the Monmouth County and New Jersey Bar Associations and the County Legal Aid Society. He served as Mayor of Red Bank for two terms from 1962-1965.
In 1978, he was appointed by-then NJ Gov. Brendan Byrne to the Superior Court of New Jersey and sat in the Family, Civil, and Criminal divisions for 10 years, the last three years as the presiding judge of the Criminal Division.
Before he was appointed as a judge, he served as the municipal attorney for Red Bank, the Zoning/Planning Board Attorney for Keyport, Hazlet, and Millstone Township, and as an Assistant Prosecutor for Monmouth County.
Judge Nicosia retired from the bench in 1988 and joined in the McKenna, Dupont, Higgins, Stone and Washburne law firm in Red Bank until he retired in 2011.
He was a past member of the Red Bank Lions and Wheel clubs. He also served as the chair of the Red Bank Democrats for 25 years.
He was predeceased by his wife of 71 years, Dorothy Laura Nicosia (nee Durando); and his sister, Eleanor Grande.
He is survived by: his two daughters, Lauren Ann Nicosia, and Mary Jacqueline Nicosia, both of Red Bank.
Services are pending at this time.
— Edited obituary provided by family via Thompson Memorial Home
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