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 Michael
Pietruszka
Michael Pietruszka was named the P&BA 2004 Man of
the Year. The announcement was made at the General Membership Meeting on May 4.
This year’s Man of the Year is being recognized for his unending contribution to
the growth of Polish Heritage and for his contributions to the community at
large.
Born and raised in Western New York, Michael Pietruszka graduated from Canisius
College Magna Cum Laude, and graduated with honors from the Syracuse University
College of Law.
Michael is very involved in the Polish-American Community of Western New York.
He writes for the Am-Pol Eagle and Polish American Journal newspapers, and
Polonia Today and Polish News magazines from Chicago. He serves as a director of
the Western New York Chapter of the Kosciuszko Foundation, a director of the
Western New York Division of the Polish American Congress, a delegate to the
Polish American/Jewish American Council of Western New York and an honorary
director of the Polish Cadets of Buffalo. In March of 1992, the Buffalo News
Sunday Magazine published Judge Pietruszka's account of his visit to Rzeszow
entitled "The New Old World". He has also published "Polonia Connections", a
directory of Polonia organizations covering Western and Central New York,
Southern Ontario and Northwest Pennsylvania, and compiles a calendar of Polonia
events including those of the Professional & Businessmen’s Association.
Michael takes his community ties very seriously, being an active member of many
organizations, including Msgr. Nash Council of the Knights of Columbus, the 100
Club of Buffalo, the Urban League of Buffalo, the Buffalo State College
Community Advisory Committee, the Northwest Buffalo Community Center, St.
Gabriel's Parish, the Lovejoy District Neighborhood Revitalization Corporation,
Cub Scout Pack 325, the Msgr. Healy Foundation Scholarship Committee, the
N.A.A.C.P., the Forest District Civic Association and the St. Joseph's Guild and
has been a member of the P&BA since 1988.
Michael Pietruszka was appointed to the Buffalo City Court in January of 1988 by
Mayor James D. Griffin. In 1988, he was elected as the youngest full-time judge
in New York State. Michael was elected to the Erie County Court Bench on
November 3, 1998. In his more than sixteen years as a full-time judge, Judge
Pietruszka has closed more than 30,000 criminal cases and thousands of civil
matters. And he has been complimented for his innovative and even-handed
approach by both litigants and attorneys.
Michael Pietruszka is a member of the American, the New York State, and the Erie
County Bar Associations. He also belongs to the Association of Trial Lawyers of
America, the Judges and Police Conference of Erie County, the Charles S. Desmond
Chapter of the American Inns of Court and the Advocates Club of W.N.Y. He also
serves on the Criminal Law Curriculum Development Committee and faculty of the
NYS Annual Judicial Seminar, and the Eighth Judicial District Advisory Council.
He is the Chair of the American Bar Association's National Conference of
Specialized Court Judges and has completed the Leadership Institute in Judicial
Education at the University of Memphis. Judge Pietruszka has lectured to groups
of judges on the American judicial system while in Poland, assisted the Slovak
Republic in preparing legislation organizing its post-Communist era judiciary
and hosted many foreign visitors interested in studying the New York State
judiciary.
Judge Pietruszka has received a number of awards for his community activities,
including the Buffalo Bison Baseball Polish American of the Year, National
Columbus Day Committee Jurist Citation of Honor, the Pulaski Police Association
Man of the Year Award, the Buffalo Chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference's Martin Luther King Jr., Human Service Award, the Hispanic Law
Enforcement Officers Association Recognition Award and three Certificates of
Honor from the N.Y.S. Bar Association. Judge Pietruszka served, along with U.S.
Magistrate Judge Hugh Scott, as a Grand Marshal of the first Kosciuszko - King
Festival Parade in 2000. He is also listed in two editions of Who's Who in
American Law, Who's Who in America 2000, Who's Who in the World 2001 and the
first edition of Who's Who in Polish America.
The Man of the Year is the highest recognition that can be bestowed upon a P&BA
member. The Board of Directors and the membership congratulate Michael
Pietruszka for his achievement. He will be honored as the 44th P&BA Man of the
Year at the annual Past Presidents/Man of the Year banquet to be held in
October.
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