Obituary of David S. Ritter

Hon. David Smith Ritter November 25, 1934 - August 4, 2017 Retired Judge and Middletown native David S. Ritter passed away, surrounded by family, on August 4th of this year at Kaplan Family Hospice Residence in Newburgh, NY. David Smith Ritter was born in Middletown in 1934 to Charles Frederick Ritter and Lillian Holfelder Ritter. Judge Ritter graduated from Middletown High School in 1952. Even then it was clear that he was a natural leader. Tall and good looking, "Debonair" Dave excelled at sports, was elected president of the student council, and was voted most charming and most likely to succeed by his classmates. After completing his bachelor's degree at Union College in 1956, he attended Cornell Law School, from which he graduated with honors in 1959. After Cornell, Ritter won the Federal Practice Award, and joined the U.S. Attorney General's office where he served under Attorneys General William Rodgers and Robert Kennedy. From Washington D.C., he returned to Middletown with his young and growing family in 1962, where he joined the firm of Bull, Morreale, Ingrassia, Ritter & Williams. In the late 1960s, he also served as confidential legal secretary to the honorable Supreme Court Justice Clare J. Hoyt. During the 1970s, Ritter rose through the ranks of the Orange County District Attorney's Office to Chief Assistant District Attorney. It was during this period that he prosecuted two high profile and controversial cases - a corruption case against Police Chief Humbert Cappelli of Newburgh, and the murder trial of Wilfredo Rivera, who killed a Newburgh policeman. After the sudden death in office of Abraham Weissman, the Orange County District Attorney in 1974, Ritter decided to stand for office. Despite failing to win the endorsement of Republican Party chairman William Doulin (who was then under indictment for federal perjury charges), he won in both the Republican primary and general election under the campaign slogan "A professional, not a politician." After serving five years as district attorney, Ritter was elected county court judge in 1981. In 1983, he presided over the Brinks Murder Trial, a case which garnered international attention. He was elected a Supreme Court judge in 1985, and was appointed as a special judge to preside over the bribery and conspiracy trial of Bronx Democratic Leader Stanley Friedman by Governor Mario Cuomo. He was appointed Administrative Judge of the 9th Judicial District in 1988, and Associate Justice of the second department of the Appellate Division in 1990, a position from which he fully retired in 2010. David loved his home and his family. He was an avid golfer his whole life, and was always eager to grill no matter what the weather. He enjoyed having his house ("the Barn") serve as a place for family gatherings and celebrations - including the weddings of two of his children. He was fond of Christmas, as everyone who visited knew, since he left the Christmas tree up year round. Ritter married Sandra Bauhan in 1956. They had five children - Karl Holfelder Ritter, Andrew Karr Ritter, Gretchen Ritter, Matthew Bauhan Ritter, and Alexander Smith Ritter. They were divorced in 1975 and he was remarried to Janet Hickok Williams in 1978. With Janet, he raised his two stepsons, Douglas Scott Williams and Ethan Field Williams. Ritter was predeceased by his mother Lillian in 1955, his father Fred in 1974 his wife Janet in 1993, his eldest son Karl in 1997, and his brother Jim in 2001. He is survived by his other four children Andy (and wife Karen), Gretchen, Matt (and wife Leslie), and Alex, and his two step sons, Doug (and wife Kim), and Ethan. He is also survived by twelve grandchildren, Tyler Ritter, Abby Ritter, Rose Keel, Lukas Keel, Schyller Ritter, Jill Lamberg, Ian Ritter, Amanda Williams, Leandra Williams, Tiffany Williams, Colin Williams, and Brooke Williams, and one great granddaughter Lillian Diangelo. He is also survived by his three step brothers Bob Youngs (and wife Sally), John Youngs (and wife Clare), and Dick Youngs (and wife Joyce), his sister-in-law Marje Ritter, and many nieces and nephews. Visitation hours will be held at the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, 72 West Main Street, Middletown, NY, on Thursday, August 10 from 2-4 pm and 7-9 pm. A funeral service will be held on Friday, August 11 at 11 am at the Funeral Home. Burial will be in the Wallkill Cemetery Town of Wallkill, N.Y. In lieu of flowers please send donations to the Kaplan Family Hospice Residence C/O Hospice of Orange and Sullivan Counties 800 Stony Brook Ct. Newburgh, N.Y. 12550. Arrangements by Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc. 343-6023 or www.ocfuneralhomes.com.