Retired State Supreme Court Justice Costello dies

Ralph Francis Costello, a former Legal Aid attorney who rose to become a State Supreme Court justice known for his compassion, has died.

Costello, whose most recent post was assistant town attorney in Brookhaven, passed away Saturday morning while asleep at his East Moriches home, said his stepdaughter, Elizabeth Amaral. He was 69. A cause of death has not been determined, Amaral said.

Over the course of a legal career in Suffolk that began more than 40 years ago, Costello garnered a reputation for warmth and generosity. Amaral said it was not unusual for Costello to get calls in the middle of the night from people in need of advice, and he was known to often throw on his clothes and head out to help them.

"Ralph was one of the kindest men I ever knew," Amaral said. "He had such a calm, intelligent demeanor."

Costello was born in Flushing, and his family moved to West Babylon in 1951. He graduated from West Babylon High School and what was then SUNY at Stony Brook. He took his law degree in 1967 after completing a joint St. John's University Law School, SUNY Stony Brook program.

From 1972 until 1991, Costello was chief assistant attorney at the Legal Aid Society of Suffolk County, working in both civil and criminal litigation. In 1992, Costello became a District Court judge in Suffolk and held that position until 1996.

He served as a State Supreme Court justice from 1997 to 2010, presiding over civil litigation. In that post, Costello handled a revolving inventory of more than 1,000 cases.

A. Gail Prudenti, the state's chief administrative judge, worked with Costello for more than 20 years and said his death is a "terrible loss to the entire legal community."

"He was a terrific judge," Prudenti said. "But much more importantly he was a terrific, caring human being . . . he was a good man, just a very, very good man."

He is survived by a son, Ralph Costello Jr.; his mother, Constance Costello; a brother, Frank Costello; a sister, Margaret Bonaventure; and his first wife, Judith Costello. In addition to Amaral, he is also survived by a stepson, Christian Sanna, his widow Ann Costello and five grandchildren.

A wake is scheduled Tuesday and Wednesday at Noce Funeral Home in West Babylon from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 7 to 9 p.m. A funeral Mass is to take place Thursday morning at Our Lady of Grace Church in West Babylon, though no exact time had been determined last evening.