Local Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Larceny and Fraud
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(The following information was first published on Law 360) Michael Lippman, age 71 of Scarsdale pled guilty on Monday to larceny and fraud charges for stealing almost $1.5 million from 13 clients he was representing. The funds were intended for real estate transfers and estate planning.
Lippman, who was previously disbarred, was charge with grand larceny, tax fraud and scheme to defraud by the Acting Westchester County District Attorney James McCarty.
This was not Lippman's first transgression. While working as a lawyer for the Bronx County Public Administrator, Lippman stole $150,000 from two estates and pled guilty to charges in September 2014.
Following Monday's guilty plea, Lippman remains out on bail. He is scheduled to be sentenced in June and faces a maximum term of 15 years in state prison.
According to prosecutors, Lippman stole nearly $1.5 million from clients between January 2010 and September 2015. In one instance, prosecutors alleged, Lippman stole $431,000 in funds that were intended to go toward the purchase of a property. In another instance, he allegedly stole nearly $160,000 intended to pay off a client's mortgage and forestall a foreclosure action.
Prosecutors also accused Lippman of failing to pay $50,000 in taxes to New York state.
At the time the charges were filed in September 2014, then-District Attorney Janet DiFiore said in a statement, "As alleged in the complaint, the defendant took advantage of people who turned to him for his legal expertise and guidance only to become victims of his greed."
"He violated the oath he took as an attorney when he used client funds and properties entrusted to him and used them for his own personal use," DiFiore added.
According to Lippman's website, he worked as counsel to the Bronx public administrator for more than 25 years, helping oversee approximately 1,000 estates of people who died without a valid will. He is a 1969 graduate of Brooklyn Law School. Lippman is represented by Murray Richman.
Sue Cofer Passes Away at 55
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Sue Cofer, the Teacher in Charge at Kids' Base and the Little School passed away suddenly on Monday February 1 at the age of 55. She taught at the school for over a decade and was beloved by the children, their parents and her colleagues. A resident of Wappingers Falls, Cofer is survived by her husband Robert Cofer, three children, Jennifer, James and Matthew as well as two sisters, their husbands and nieces and nephews.
Speaking of Sue's feelings about KBLS, her husband Bob said, "Sue truly loved KBLS, its staff, its parents, but most of all, the children. Little can compare to the love of a child and Sue always enjoyed seeing their smiling faces. She also always accepted the challenges that were presented to her, rolled up her sleeves and went at them. The sense of accomplishment she got from meeting and overcoming those challenges just made her stronger, and she was so happy about the support she felt from everyone there."
Sue leaves a void at the Little School, who is now searching for a new executive director. She was also remembered at Concordia College where she worked at the summer program from 2007-14.
Born in Bronxville on October 15, 1960, Suzanne Rose Kofer was the daughter of Lorraine Taylor and the late Robert D. Taylor. Her funeral service was held at the Hopewell Reformed Church, in Hopewell Junction. A memorial service for Cofer will be held in on Tuesday March 1 at 7:30 pm, location TBD. Donations in her name may be made to The Children's Hospital Foundation at Maria Fareri Children's Hospital. For online condolences and memorial donations, please visit Suzanne's Book of Memories at www.mchoulfuneralhome.com.
Here is the eulogy delivered by Cofer's sister Kathy at the funeral.
It is so wonderful to see all of Suzy's friends, colleagues and relatives here. It just shows that she was so very loved and respected by so many people. It would make her very happy.
My sister and I were very close and would talk all the time. She worked so hard, almost always for other people and I would tell her to take some time for herself. Have a massage, go out for a drink with friends, just go for a walk. And her answer would always be "I'm too busy". No matter how much I badgered her, she would still run around doing things. And Bob would be telling her the same thing. But she didn't listen.
And I realized now that that was who she was. She was a doer and a giver. It gave her satisfaction to do things for her family and friends. She lived her life the way she wanted to and that is the right way to live.
I have so many memories of all the fun times we shared. My children and hers are extremely close, my daughter Jessica even called her her second mommy. We spent a lot of time together including every holiday and so many vacations.
Suzy was a good sport as Jenn and Jessica would always find a way to tease her- from randomly playing her favorite 80's song-Beds are Burning, to sticking loads of pamphlets they would gather from various random places in her drawers, coat pockets and other places. There was the famous baby powder incident, where Jenn poured baby powder all over Jessica when they were little. I freaked out and Suzy just laughed which made me angrier- she brought that up all the time. There were the many times that people would ask us if we were twins and she always had the same reply "she is 4 years older", that always annoyed me which is why she did it.
Then there was her famous "deli voice", the way she recorded her phone message, which would make anyone be afraid to leave a message and her favorite phrases when she got annoyed - oh, fudge, fudgicles and my favorite when she was really angry "shoot the duck." I never figured out what that meant, but we all found it very entertaining.
She was so proud of her children; they were her world. She and Jenn were like sisters sharing so much time together- She was so proud of Jimmy and how happy he was at college and how well he was doing. She also loved cheering Matt (sometimes yelling under her breath) at his baseball games. But Matthew, you still have to wait until 18 to get that tattoo- I know what your mom told you!
She helped my parents out so much and after our father died, she made it a point to call my mom every day and help her whenever she needed anything. She was a wonderful daughter and made my parents proud.
We all marveled at the way Bob loved her- when she would put on make-up he would say "Why bother, you can't improve on perfection." You could tell how much he loved her just by the way he looked at her. He would also say inappropriate remarks to her on purpose, just to make us cringe and her say "Bob, stop."
Last year when my husband Roger and I had our accident, she was my rock. When I couldn't speak, we would text each other at all hours of the night. She comforted me and my children, and I could never thank her enough for all she did. She drove back and forth to the hospital and then the rehab center in Connecticut from her home almost every weekend for over 4 months. And there were some good times at rehab that I've heard such as the time my son put ninja turtle stickers all over her back which she wore throughout the rehab center without knowing. She was always a good sport about stuff like that.
Suzy and I were also lucky enough to take a wonderful trip with our mom to Arizona a couple years ago, and spend time with our sister Karen and her children. Suzy and I also had the opportunity to meet our great-nephew for the first time, which I know made Suzy happy.
She loved Cape Cod so much- Rock Harbor, Provincetown and the place our dad always used to pose her for pictures when she was little - Fort Hill. It was there that she also discovered her love for Cuffy's sweatshirts- Grey Medium Zip up Hoodies. It will be hard to go back there without her.
I only had 5 days from when she was admitted into the hospital and we were talking, until she became unresponsive. 5 days. I am so happy that she knew she was loved by her family. We said we loved each other every time we hung up the phone or left each other, and we meant it.
5 days is a very short time. So I ask all of you to appreciate what you have, cherish the small moments of your day even when nothing exciting may be happening. Tell the people you love, that you love them more often- don't save it for holidays and special occasions.
If you are having petty arguments and not talking to a friend or family member, call them and put an end to it.
There will always be a void in our lives. But we can be comforted by our wonderful memories of Suzy and her beautiful smile.
And she will be looking down and smiling at us with our dad and all the other angels in heaven.
Student Hit at SMS, Fatality on Metro North Tracks
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A Scarsdale Middle School students was hit by a car at 2:47 on Monday February 1. The 12 year-old boy was sitting on a curb in the school's parking lot on Mamaroneck Road when the driver of a 2005 Honda in the parking lot failed to see him and struck him. There were unconfirmed reports of damage to the boys leg and police do not believe the injuries were critical.
A fatality on the Metro North tracks at the Botanical Gardens station in the Bronx halted both the Harlem and New Haven lines on Tuesday evening and left thousands stranded at Grand Central.
A male student from Fordham Prep was struck by a northbound train at the station around 3:30 pm, in an apparent suicide. Since the New Haven and Harlem lines share the track at Botanical Gardens the fatality caused both lines to be shut down for a police investigation. The accident caused significant delays for passengers on both lines throughout the night. Metro North was back on schedule on Tuesday morning.
This is the second suicide for Fordham Prep in just two weeks. Another Fordham Prep jumped to his death in front of a Metro North train at Phillipse Manor two weeks ago.
Judge Miriam Cedarbaum Remembered in Scarsdale
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Longtime Scarsdale resident Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum passed away on February 5 at the age of 86 after suffering a severe stroke the week before. She lived in Greenacres with her husband Bernard Cedarbaum for many years. He died ten years ago after a 49-year marriage.
She was a graduate of Barnard College and Columbia Law School. Appointed in 1986, Judge Cedarbaum served as a United States District Judge in the Southern District of New York for decades, taking senior status in 1998. She clerked for Judge Edward Jordan Dimock and then served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York.
At one point in her career, she served as the Village Justice in Scarsdale.
Judge Cedarbaum was a Trustee Emerita of Barnard College, and she was a member of the American Law Institute. She was awarded the Columbia Law School Medal for Excellence in 2015.
Peter Strauss, a former Mayor of Scarsdale and a neighbor from Greenacres said, "My wife Laura and I knew Miriam well. We also knew and admired her talented and community-minded late husband, Bernard, who was one of our memorable Village Trustees and was awarded the Scarsdale Bowl in 1999. Miriam and Laura had similar Brooklyn backgrounds, both having attended The Brooklyn Jewish Center Sunday School which was designed according to the Reconstructionist theories of Mordecai Kaplan whose principles Miriam admired. Closer to home and Scarsdale, in 1997 Miriam conducted the wedding ceremony of our daughter, Diana, and Michael Norwood, a Scotland Yard Homocide Detective. Earlier, Miriam was a member of a committee I chaired (1976-77), appointed by Joe Hofheimer, then School Board Chairman, to study the way in which the Scarsdale School Board negotiated its agreements with the Scarsdale Teachers Union. Until then the common practice was for the School Superintendent and the Board Chairman to negotiate directly with the Teachers Union. My committee, after extended study, unanimously recommended to the Board that it cease bargaining directly and hire a professional labor negotiator to conduct the negotiations on behalf of the Board. The Board, in a split vote, adopted the committee's recommendation, hired a professional negotiator, and that practice has continued to this day. Miriam was a significant force on that committee."
Former Scarsdale Mayor Ed Morgan, who served from 1997 - 1999, remembered Cedarbaum, saying, "With the passing last week of Miriam Cedarbaum, Scarsdale has lost one of its most notable, wise and lovely residents of recent decades. Miriam was a life member of the Scarsdale Forum, although in the past few years she had lived in Manhattan. Miriam and her husband Bernard Cedarbaum were both lawyers with distinguished backgrounds, who came to Scarsdale to live, raise their children, and be involved. And they were involved, both in Scarsdale and beyond. Both were members of the American Law Institute, a group which admits less than one tenth of one percent of American lawyers, including most Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court and many other very prominent members of the legal profession.
In addition to her legal career in Manhattan as a corporate counsel and in private practice with Davis, Polk & Wardwell, Miriam was active in Scarsdale, among other things serving for several years as Scarsdale's Village Justice, handling both civil cases, and criminal cases in their early stages, in addition to the traffic matters perhaps best known to Scarsdale residents.
From there, Miriam was appointed in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan to be a federal judge, specifically a U.S. District Judge handling trials in one of the busiest courts in the United States, in the Southern District of New York in Manhattan. During the decades which followed, Miriam handled thousands of cases, many of them major civil or criminal matters. Most publicized of these was the trial of Martha Stewart on insider trading charges. Through it all, Miriam remained Miriam, as we saw her on her visits to Scarsdale and elsewhere. Those of us who were privileged to know her shall miss her greatly."
In 2015 Cederabaum was awarded the Medal for Excellence by the Dean of Columbia Law School. In an email from Dean Lester he says:
"This honor is reserved for those who best exemplify the qualities of character, intellect, and social and professional responsibility. Miriam Cedarbaum was one of eight women in her 1953 law school graduating class and a pioneer in her legal career. After graduating from the Law School, she served as a clerk to Judge Edward Jordan Dimock of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. She also served as an assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York; as an attorney in the Office of the Deputy Attorney General of the United States; as first assistant counsel for the New York State Moreland Act Commission on the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law; as associate counsel at the Museum of Modern Art; and as a senior attorney at Davis Polk & Wardwell. Later, she served on the bench in the Southern District of New York for 29 years, presiding over dozens of high-profile cases, including the sentencing of Faisal Shahzad, who pleaded guilty in 2010 to an attempted car bomb attack in New York City's Times Square. Judge Cedarbaum was a friend to many in our community, a loyal supporter of the Law School, and an example and inspiration for generations of faculty and graduates."
Judge Cedarbaum is survived by her two sons, Daniel Goldman Cedarbaum (Caryn Jacobs) and Jonathan Goldman Cedarbaum (Alice Winkler), her four grandchildren, Jacob Cedarbaum, Samuel Goldman Cedarbaum, Louis Cedarbaum and Dahlia Cedarbaum, and by her companion Bob Ehrenbard.
The funeral service is planned for Tuesday, February 9, at 11:30 a.m., at Park Avenue Synagogue, 50 East 87th Street in Manhattan. Burial will immediately follow the funeral service, at Old Montefiore Cemetery in Queens.
Last Words from Jason Marra
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Jason Marra, Scarsdale's Superintendent for Parks, Recreation and Conservation announced that he will leave his job in the Village after seven years in Scarsdale. He has managed a myriad of recreational programs, the Scarsdale Pool, the camp and oversaw the rejuvenation of Hyatt Park and the restoration of Harwood Park. Marra will be working in Great Neck where he will manage an even larger program and budget. We posed a few questions to him and here is what he shared:
Please tell us about your background – I grew up in Harrison NY, Westchester County. Growing up I began developing a passion for parks and recreation not only from using my local parks and athletic fields as a child but at age 15 my first job was working as a summer day camp counselor for the Harrison recreation department. From that moment forward I worked for the Harrison Recreation Department doing almost every recreation job from maintenance to program instructor. This gave me an appreciation to all the work that goes into maintaining parks facilities and program planning.
Where did you go to school? Where did you work before coming to Scarsdale, how did you end up working here and how long have you been here? In what positions? – I have a Bachelor's Degree in Recreation and Leisure Studies from Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, CT and a Masters Degree in Recreation Education from Lehman College, Bronx, NY.
My first fulltime recreation position was right out of college at a not-for-profit agency in Purchase, NY at the Purchase Community House. My position was Recreation Supervisor and I was responsible for recreation programming for two years. Then I took a position as Recreation Supervisor for the Town of Cortlandt Manor, NY as I wanted to be involved in municipal parks and recreation. After three years at Cortlandt Manor I took the position as Assistant Superintendent of Parks, Recreation and Conservation for the Village of Scarsdale which I held for four years. In 2012, I was promoted to Superintendent of Parks, Recreation and Conservation for the Village of Scarsdale. I have been with the Village for just over 7 years.
What do you like best about the community and the people you work with?
I loved working in this community as many of the residents shared the same passion I have for parks and recreation and they understand the importance it has in improving the quality of life for the people in the community. There is a great deal of community involvement and volunteerism across a wide range of recreational activities. It was so enjoyable to work with the many volunteer organizations such as the many youth sport groups, the Friends of Scarsdale Parks, and the PRC Advisory Council just to name a few. Whether it was parks, youth sports, or conservation it was great to work with the community to make Scarsdale the best place to live.
Did you find anything to be unique about Scarsdale?
The expectations in Scarsdale were high to provide the best services which I appreciated. I always embraced being held to a high standard. As a parks and recreation professional I strived to be the best and provide the best services for the community.
What are some of the initiatives you are most proud of?
The Parks, Recreation and Conservation Departments goal is to build community and I am proud of the work my staff and I do every day. We are currently working on the Hyatt Park Rejuvenation project which has been amazing to work on. The Hyatt Park project was a complete team effort by the Village as multiple departments worked together to build what is essentially a new park. The redesign focused on fitness and health and I know the park will be enjoyed by many residents of all ages for many years to come. Although work is still in the process of being completed the soft opening of the park has been successful as youth of all ages have enjoyed the park. The official grand opening will take place in May which I plan to attend.
I am also proud of new programs such as the Community Planting Day which brought over 135 volunteers to assist in the restoration of Harwood Park, Parties in the Park which were special event family programs that showcased Village Parks, and the Youth Sport Jamboree which showcased the wide variety of youth sports available. All three of these program focused on building community and bringing people together.
My staff and I were also able to improve and redesign current programs such as youth soccer and youth tennis by providing quality professional instruction. I believe the programs being provided are of higher quality and more efficient from an organizational and scheduling standpoint.
Finally, I am very proud that we were able to increase our revenues for the Village by improving programs and creating new ones. Revenues that offset expenses increased by 7% during my tenure and we are now at 70% revenue that supports the entire PRC Dept. This is the highest percentage we have ever been and what makes this special is we did it by not increasing fees but by improving the quality of service we provide which in turn resulted in high participation and enjoyment.
What are the challenges of working in Scarsdale?
The only challenge I found in Scarsdale was to constantly be the best you can be.
What will be your new position in Great Neck? What are your responsibilities? What challenges are they facing now?
My new position will be the Superintendent for the Great Neck Park District. It will be an exciting position from a career standpoint as Park Districts are unique for New York State. Great Neck Parks is its own taxing district which means all tax revenue goes directly to parks and recreation. The department is larger from a full time employee standpoint as I will have 50 + fulltime staff in Great Neck compared to 11 fulltime in Scarsdale. Also the community size is about double that of Scarsdale. It will always be a challenge going into to new position as I will need to evaluate the current operations and put a long term plan in place. This will take some time as there are many considerations when operating a parks and recreation department and many times operations are designed around the unique community needs. From a community standpoint I believe I am well prepared and there are similarities between Scarsdale and Great Neck.
Where will you live – is housing as expensive there as here?
I have always been a Westchester boy so my plan for now will be to commute from my home in White Plains. My plan is to see how things go for a year or two and make a determination at that time as to what would be best for my family.
Were there any plans in progress here that you hope the staff will continue to implement?
One of the hardest things about leaving the Village at this time is walking away from some of the plans and initiatives I was in the process of working on. As I transition out of my position I will be putting into place some important initiatives for the future incoming Superintendent. My staff and I have worked on improving the senior programs which will be redesigned to offer additional services beginning in June of 2016. Also, I had planned to focus on the Weinberg Nature Center to make that an area not only for outdoor education but to focus on environmental and conservation education. I believe the Weinberg Nature Center could be a jewel that many other communities do not have.
Most importantly, a plan is in place for a community needs assessment and creation of a parks and recreation master plan. The master plan would be designed as a guide for future facilities improvements and program planning for the next 5 to 10 years. It believe this is essential to make sure that the community's needs are being met.
What has been one of the funnier or more interesting problems/issues you faced on the job?
The funniest moment actually happened my first week as Superintendent of Parks, Recreation and Conservation regarding geese. When I took over, the Village had a plan in place to deal with the overpopulation of geese in parks and athletic fields. The plan was to have the USDA round up the resident geese, slaughter them and use them to feed the homeless. Not surprisingly, many people had an issue with this option but I had no idea how much press there would be. I received calls from fox, cbs, nbc, and every other news organization to do interviews. It was strange since it wasn't my plan but I was thrown right into the media fire. I will never forget people calling after the interviews saying they saw me on tv taking about geese poop. I knew in my position I would always being talking to the press but I didn't ever imagine it would be about geese poop? I was known as the "geesebuster" for months. In the end, the Village did not go ahead with the plan and we managed the resident geese population through humane methods.
Last Words
It has been a pleasure working with the Village of Scarsdale and this community for the past seven years. The Mayor and Village Board have always supported and recognized the importance of parks, recreation, and conservation initiatives which have made things easier to accomplish. The Village Manager, Steve Pappalardo, Village staff, and the parks and recreation department staff have helped me develop into the person I am today and none of my accomplishments would have happen without them. It is very difficult to move on from this community as I look to advance my career but my heart will always be in Scarsdale.
