Alvin Hellerstein, the United States federal judge overseeing the drug trafficking case in opposition to deposed Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, has died at the age of 92, an official confirmed on Wednesday.
Hellerstein was among the many oldest serving federal judges within the US, prompting questions on his means to preside over what might be a prolonged trial involving Maduro, who faces drug trafficking expenses.
During his judicial profession, Hellerstein dealt with a number of high-profile circumstances, together with civil lawsuits arising from the September 11, 2001, Al-Qaeda assaults on New York and Washington. He incessantly rejected settlements he thought of unfair to the plaintiffs.
An official of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the place Hellerstein served, confirmed his loss of life on Wednesday.
The judge additionally had authorized confrontations with US President Donald Trump. He rejected Trump’s try and switch his New York hush cash case from state to federal court docket.
In 2025, Hellerstein additionally blocked the Trump administration from deporting alleged Venezuelan gang members with out giving them a chance to look earlier than a court docket.
Another notable resolution got here in 2015, when he ordered the US authorities to launch a set of images documenting the abuse of detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Hellerstein additionally presided over a trial in 2025 involving French banking big BNP Paribas and its actions in Sudan. A jury discovered that the financial institution’s work within the nation had helped maintain the federal government of former ruler Omar al-Bashir and awarded $20.75 million in damages to 3 Sudanese plaintiffs.
The judge had overseen the sprawling drug trafficking case linked to Maduro for greater than a decade. The proceedings have additionally resulted within the conviction of Venezuela’s former intelligence chief, Hugo Armando Carvajal.
Maduro was captured by US forces in January throughout a navy raid on his compound in Venezuela.
Hellerstein studied regulation at Columbia University earlier than serving as a lawyer within the US Army between 1957 and 1960. He subsequently entered non-public authorized observe.
In 1998, then-President Bill Clinton nominated him to function a district court docket judge within the Southern District of New York.
