Funeral For Queens DA Richard Brown Will Be In Forest Hills

FOREST HILLS, QUEENS — Family and friends of the late Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown will gather Tuesday for funeral services in Forest Hills, where Brown lived.

Brown, who was appointed the district attorney of Queens County in 1991 by then-Gov. Mario Cuomo, was the longest-serving DA in Queens history. He died on May 3, after battling health issues associated with Parkinson’s Disease.

He is survived by his wife Rhoda and their three children. He is also survived by their two granddaughters, Leah and Alana. Brown lived with his family in a three-story home in Forest Hills, according to The New York Times.

The Times wrote in a 1995 profile of Brown: "Standing 5 feet 5 and built like a fireplug, Mr. Brown bustles around Queens like a small-town constable, showing up at crime scenes at any hour of the night, stumping at neighborhood watch meetings, even encouraging people to call him the Judge, to keep alive the public memory of the 18 years he spent on the bench."

As DA, Brown created one of the state's first drug courts, mental health courts and veterans courts. He also created a domestic violence bureau, the office of immigrant affairs, the animal cruelty unit and the Queens treatment intervention program to address the opioid crisis.

"Judge Brown loved working for the people of Queens," Chief Assistant District Attorney John M. Ryan, now the acting DA, said in a statement. "He would often be the first person in the office and very likely the last to leave every day — and sometimes on weekends too. He was known to visit crime scenes, meet with victims and work tirelessly to give them justice."

Funeral services are Tuesday, May 7, 2019, at 11:30 a.m. at The Reform Temple of Forest Hills, located at 71-11 112th St. in Queens.

Patch national staffer Feroze Dhanoa contributed to this report.