Spring Valley Mayor Alan Simon disbarred for bad behavior as a judge

SPRING VALLEY - Mayor Alan Simon has been disbarred as an attorney after 50 years for the ranting, threatening behavior that got him stripped of his robes as a judge.

A state Supreme Court Appellate Division released its decision on Wednesday disbarring Simon immediately. Simon had been admitted as an attorney on Dec. 18, 1968, according to the decision.

The court's decision stated: "Ordered that the respondent, Alan Michael Simon, is disbarred, effective immediately, and his name is stricken from the roll of attorneys and counselors-at-law."

Simon didn't return a request for comment on Wednesday. The disbarment doesn't affect the 75-year-old Simon's job as mayor

Until being booted from the bench, Simon had served as a Spring Valley judge since 2005 and Ramapo Justice Court since 2011. He was appointed acting Hillburn village justice in 2016.

His indiscretions occurred in Spring Valley, a government known for its dysfunction during the past decade.

The disbarment decision cited the findings of the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct and a state Court of Appeals upholding the commission's recommendation removing Simon as a judge in Spring Valley and Ramapo in 2016.

The courts upheld professional misconduct charges claiming Simon’s "actions reflect a pattern of calculated misconduct that mitigates against [his] assertion that the misbehavior complained of will not be repeated if he is allowed to remain on the bench."

Based on charges filed against Simon, the Judicial Commission had recommended Simon be removed from the bench.

The commission found the facts showed Simon guilty of ranting in court, and bullying, harassing and threatening his staff, fellow judges and village officials with arrest or contempt of court. The commission also found Simon gave false testimony at his hearing.

Simon repeatedly threatened to hold various employees and officials in contempt, the courts said, and "willfully interjected himself into the political process involving the election of an office other than his own."

The Court of Appeals upheld the judicial removal.

The state's highest court found Simon, "among other things ... used a sanction — a tool meant to shield from frivolous conduct — as a sword to punish a legal services organization for a perceived slight in an inexcusable and patently improper way."

While Simon in his appeal acknowledged being rude and abrasive at times, his lawyers argued the penalty of removal from the bench was too harsh and a sanction was more appropriate.

Simon's lawyers —  Joseph Maria of White Plains and Lawrence Mandelker of Manhattan — had maintained he would tame his behavior if reinstated to the bench.

His lawyers called Simon's behavior "a misguided attempt to either improve the physical conditions of the court, improve the performance of court personnel or improve the integrity and independence of the court from a corrupt mayor," a reference to then-Spring Valley Mayor Noramie Jasmin, who later went to prison on federal charges.

Simon won election as Spring Valley mayor in November 2017 after winning a September Democratic Party primary in the village where Democrats hold a heavy majority among registered voters.

He also has lost his temper as mayor, firing employees and, at one time, cursing at a trustee and employee.

Simon has had a long career in government, serving as a Bronx prosecutor and public defender in Rockland County before working for more than a decade as Ramapo's town attorney.

Spring Valley Mayor Alan Simon curses out trustee, fires director during rant

He also served a controversial stint as the town building and zoning administrator, leaving under a cloud of allegations that he overstepped his authority by signing and overriding engineering reports.

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Spring Valley Mayor Alan Simon disbarred for bad behavior as a judge