Local resident Robert (Bob) Cypher has declared his candidacy for the New York State Supreme Court, 9th Judicial District, running on the GOP line. The Supreme Court is the trial court of original jurisdiction, hearing both civil and criminal cases. The 9th Judicial District comprises the Lower Hudson Valley, including Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess and Orange Counties. The election is on Tuesday, November 8th.
“I really enjoyed my time as a Rye City Judge,” Cypher told MyRye.com on Wednesday. “I’ve been involved in the community for a long time. I think that the old Marine Corps adage try to leave a place better than it was when you found it has stuck with me. I know what it’s like to be a trial attorney. I know what it’s like to be under the pressure of having to try a case and how a judge can make it either less stressful or more stressful. And my my belief is I want to let the attorneys try their cases, in fairness to both them and their clients.”
Cypher will be one of 14 candidates (seven GOP, seven Dems) running for seven open judgeships. Although he is just formally announcing his candidacy, he was selected as a candidate at a GOP party convention back in August. Judges have a term of 14 years, and a retirement age of 70, with an ability to extend retirement to age 75. Cypher is 68 years old.
Cypher has been a trial attorney for 42 years. He began his career as a Judge Advocate in the United States Marine Corps and served for 23 years, active and reserve before retiring as a Major. He worked as a prosecutor in the Queens County District attorney’s office, and after leaving, has been a civil litigator, concentrating on medical malpractice defense, and other personal injury matters.
Residents will be familiar with his service as a Rye City Judge from 2014-2020, and as a Rye City Councilman from 2001-2005. He has been a volunteer firefighter in Rye since 1997 and responded to the World Trade Center following the September 11th attacks. He is a trustee of the Rye Historical Society.
Born and raised in White Plains, New York, he is a graduate of Fairfield University and Fordham Law School. He is employed as a senior trial attorney at O’Connor, McGuiness, Conte, Doyle, Oleson Watson & Loftus in White Plains. He lives in Rye, New York, with his wife of 39 years, Denise. He is the father of three children, and the grandfather of two.
