Biography-Judge Charles Gill
Judge Gill graduated from the Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law in Washington, D.C. He was named a distinguished alumnus of that University along with Governor Robert Casey of Pennsylvania and Robert Craves, the co-founder of Costco. Fresh out of law school, his Yale professor friends hired him to be the first neighborhood legal services lawyer in the country, a Ford Foundation project. U. S. Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg presided over the grand opening of that publicized event in an inner-city neighborhood in New Haven.
His legal career as a trial lawyer was in a myriad of spheres, from criminal to corporate that eventually led him to become a Connecticut Superior Court Judge. He has presided over literally thousands of cases, including, for examples, a corporate dispute that resulted in more than 100 million dollars in damages, as well as a dozen murder cases that resulted in life imprisonments, one of which is the subject of a popular novel by the famous New York trial lawyer, Louis Nizer, entitled “Catspaw”.
The Judge has keynoted at over 300 multi-professional conferences and conventions in more than forty states, Canada, Europe, and Asia. He has been joined by noted columnists George Will, Molly, Ivins, and Thomas Sowell, as well as Tom Selleck, Susan Saint James, General Colin Powell, Rob Reiner and U. S. Senators Bill Bradley and Chris Dodd. He has appeared in the national media, with John Stossel on 20/20, Good Morning American with Diane Sawyer and Charlie Gibson, and Nightline with Ted Koppel where he debated then U. S. Attorney General Janet Reno on the fate of the Cuban boy Elian Gonzalez. (According to Koppel, the Judge won the debate as the entire audience, equally divided pro and con, gave him a standing ovation at the end of the show for his thoughtful solution).
The Judge comes from a diverse background that includes sports, business, politics, and media. He did a radio call in show out of New York called “The Judge and Mrs. Jones”. A TV version of that was marketed to combat what he views as the unreality shows such as “Judge Judy”.
He has addressed the U.N. General Assembly where he was honored on the occasion of International Earth Day for his work on behalf of abused children. He also spoke at an international U.N. Convention on Domestic Violence. He has testified in Congress on two occasions on these issues and received three honorary degrees, one along with U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young, in recognition of his efforts.
His list of awards can perhaps be best summarized by the fact that two Presidents of both political parties honored him in the White House. President George H. Bush had him in the Oval Office to receive the U.S. Attorney General’s Annual Crime Victim’s Award. President William Clinton invited him to the Rose Garden for a ceremony decrying violence against Children.
“Judge Gill presents a compelling insider’s guide of how our courts really work. I have testified over 1,000 times around the world including in Judge Gill’s courtroom. He runs his court with a unique combination of toughness, compassion and humor, He shares his years of experience and makes his presentations not only interesting but, exciting as well.”
Dr. Henry Lee, Forensic Criminologist
