Obituary: Ross D. London, 74, Former Hoboken Municipal Court Judge

HOBOKEN, NJ — Ross D. London – former municipal court judge of Hoboken, beloved husband, devoted father and grandpa, true brother, uncle and friend – passed away on April 25th, 2023. He was 74 years old.

Ross was born in 1949 and grew up on the border of Bensonhurst and Gravesend in Brooklyn. He attended SUNY Binghamton, and shortly afterwards served in the Peace Corp in India.

Following this, Ross moved to New York City and then Hoboken while pursuing his Law degree at Rutgers, Newark. In the following years, Ross served as a public defender, prosecutor, patient advocate, fines and restitutions hearing officer, and juvenile court referee. He began serving as acting judge of Hoboken in 1985, and was appointed Municipal Judge of Hoboken in the early 1990s.

While living in Hoboken, Ross played an active role in the community. He gave legal advice for the incorporation and state certification for The Hudson School, a Hoboken institution, and co-wrote several of the scripts for the core curriculum fifth and sixth grade plays that continue to be performed at the Hoboken School. He helped plan the Hoboken Historical Museum, and was a founder and member of both the Hudson Theater Ensemble, a local community theater group, and the Radioland Theatre Players. Ross also worked to bring justice and peace through his creative work and scholarship.

In 2006 he earned his Ph.D from Rutgers Newark Law School, where his work focused on how trust can be restored between crime victims and offenders. This research informed a a one-act play he co-authored in 2012, In That Moment, which explores the struggles of an African American police officer involved in a fatal shooting. Two years later, Ross authored a book based on his research in 2014, Crime, Punishment, and Restorative Justice: A Framework for Restoring Trust, published by Wipf and Stock. He appeared on the public television program One on One with Steve Adubato to discuss his book further.

Following his tenure as municipal court judge, Ross continued to give back to his community. He formed the New York Avenue Block Association in Jersey City Heights, which reduced drug dealer activity in the community. He helped found the Third Ward Park Association in Passaic, which helped restore and bring life to a vital public space.

And he taught as a Professor of Justice Studies at Berkeley College and later as an Adjunct Professor at SUNY New Paltz.

Ross London loved to learn and teach, garden and converse, appreciate life and struggle for justice. He was a good man, a mensch, and his memory will be a blessing.

He is survived by his son Daniel Wortel-London, his daughter Annie Rose London, his wife Catharine and former spouse Diana, his sister Tsurah and his brother Peter.

A memorial is planned for June 11th at the Hudson School Theater at 2 p.m. (Read more about London in a news story here.)