What we know
What we know: Alvin K. Hellerstein, a federal judge who handled Trump, Maduro and 9/11 cases, dies at 92
Compiled Oct 28
What we know
- Alvin K. Hellerstein, a Manhattan federal judge, died on Wednesday at age 92.
- He was appointed to the federal bench by President Bill Clinton in 1998.
- He presided over dozens of 9/11-related wrongful death, injury and property damage lawsuits over two decades.
- He recently presided over a hearing in the narco-terrorism case against former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
- He repeatedly denied Donald Trump's requests to move or dismiss his hush money case, most recently in August.
- In 2020 he ordered Michael Cohen released from prison, ruling the government's revocation of his home confinement was retaliatory.
What we don’t know yet
- No cause of death was immediately provided.
Open questions
- What was the cause of Hellerstein's death?
- What happens next in the Maduro narco-terrorism case he was overseeing?
- Who will take over the Trump hush money case proceedings?
- Will the appeals court's directive affect how the hush money case is handled going forward?
Drawn from the Associated Press report. “What we don’t know” lists only what the reporting itself flags as unresolved.