McGuirk
NEWBURGH – Retired State Supreme Court Justice John McGuirk died
overnight Friday morning. He was 76. The Cornwall resident passed away
with family at his side at St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital in Newburgh.
Longtime friend, Orange County Sheriff Carl DuBois called him “a good friend, articulate and a knowledgeable jurist.”
DuBois got to know McGuirk through his regular greetings to new American citizens during naturalization ceremonies. “He always said, ‘Welcome to the fullness of citizenship’.”
McGuirk was “an Orange County legend,” said County Executive Steven Neuhaus. “Whether it was serving as a Supreme Court judge or in one of his many volunteer roles in our community, Judge McGuirk served residents with class, compassion and dignity,” said Neuhaus. “Most importantly, he never forgot where he came from treating every person he met with the utmost respect. His loss is monumental but his legacy will endure for many years to come.”
McGuirk began his career in 1967 serving in the US Army Advocate General Corps as an assistant professor of law at West Point.
He then served in private law practice until 1995. He also served as a justice of Cornwall Town Court.
McGuirk was elected to the Orange County Family Court where he served from 1995 to 1999 and in 2000 he joined the Supreme Court, a position from which he retired in 2011.
Justice McGuirk was married to Joan Cusack-McGuirk, the president of St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital.
