Jeremiah S. Jeremiah

Jeremiah S. Jeremiah, Jr. (1935 – July 19, 2015) was an American jurist who served as the Chief Judge of the Rhode Island Family Court from March 1987 until June 2010.

Early life and career The son of Jeremiah S. Jeremiah and his wife, Lorna, Jeremiah Jr. was of Greek and Canadian descent. A lifelong resident of Cranston, Rhode Island, he had one sister, who also pursued a career in law and became a judge, Constance Messore.

He grew up with future U.S. Senator Jack Reed.

As Chief Judge, Jeremiah oversaw the creation of the Juvenile Drug Court, the Family Treatment Court and the Mental Health Court Clinic.

Judge Jeremiah was named the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges Judge of the Year in 2005.

Controversies In April 2012, community activist Anne Grant argued in an op-ed in The Providence Journal against a bill that would have created a special chief judge emeritus license plate for Judge Jeremiah's use. Among other things, Grant argued that Jeremiah's record and that of DiPrete, the Governor who appointed him to the bench and was later imprisoned for corruption, warranted a closer look at Jeremiah's actions as Chief Judge.