Anna M. Kross

Anna Moscowitz Kross (July 17, 1891 – August 27, 1979) was a Russian-American lawyer, judge, and public official. She was New York City Commissioner of Correction from 1953 to 1966.

Early life and education Anna Moscowitz was born on July 17, 1891, in Nyasvizh, Russia. She immigrated to the United States with her parents, Maier and Esther (Drazen) Moscowitz, when she was two years old, to avoid religious persecution.

The family were poor, and Moscowitz worked in a factory and taught English. Anna studied at Columbia University in 1907, and at night studied law on a scholarship. She received an L.L.B in 1910 and an L.L.M. from New York University in 1911 and was admitted to the New York Bar in 1912. While still in law school she became interested in the fate of prisoners in the court system.

Career Muscowitz passed the bar in 1912 and began a private law practice, mostly representing labor unions. She also campaigned to reform New York City's Women's Night Court and for women's suffrage. Kross was also involved with the Lucy Stone League.

In 1918, Anna Kross became the first woman assistant corporation counsel for New York City. She served in this post until 1923, when she returned to her private practice.

She was then appointed New York City Commissioner of Correction by mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr. She was the second woman appointed to the post (after Katharine Bement Davis in 1914) which she held until 1966. Kross was known for her work "wiping out many of the dungeon-like features of the prison system"; her efforts included "installing new shower rooms and mess halls, establishing token wages for some prison jobs, and pushing for more rehabilitation programs."

In 1946 Kross organized and became the presiding Magistrate of the Home Term Court of the Borough of Manhattan, an experimental social court dealing with the problems of disturbed families. In 1951 the Home Term Court became citywide. In 1954 Kross was appointed Commissioner of Correction of New York City. During her tenure she received a great deal of publicity for her outspoken criticism of government policies that discriminated against the poor. She served with the Correction Department until her retirement in 1966 at the age of 75.

Awards In 1964, Kross was awarded the first Eleanor Roosevelt Memorial Award, presented to her by Lyndon B. Johnson.