A Simsbury criminal attorney and a West Hartford public defender are among the governor’s four nominees to state judgeships.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy also announced Wednesday five picks to fill vacancies on the state Board of Pardons and Paroles.
“I am proud to nominate these outstanding men and women to the Connecticut Superior Court and to the Board of Pardons and Paroles,” Malloy said in a statement. “These nominees will bring to the bench and to the board the skills, the temperament, and a diversity of experiences and backgrounds that will allow them to serve our state with distinction, fairness, integrity, and respect for the people of Connecticut.”
According to the judicial branch, there are currently 13 vacancies on the Superior Court, with additional vacancies anticipated later this year, Malloy said.
Superior Court nominations
Sheila M. Prats of Simsbury: Prats is a self-employed attorney, specializing in criminal, family, social security and wills. Previously, she served as Deputy Assistant Public Defender for the State of Connecticut Division of Public Defender Services. Prats previously served as a Superior Court judge from November 2000 to August 2003 before stepping down to attend to family matters. Born in Puerto Rico, she received a bachelor’s degree and law degree from UConn.
Omar A. Williams of West Hartford: Williams is an Assistant Public Defender for the State of Connecticut Division of Public Defender Services, where he has served since 2001. In his spare time, he volunteers with the Connecticut Food Bank and with the Public Defender Training Program for New Attorneys. He also serves on the Board of Managers with St. Thomas’s Day School in New Haven. He also received a bachelor’s degree and law degree from UConn.
Kevin Doyle of North Haven: Doyle is a Senior Assistant State’s Attorney for the Judicial District of New Haven, where he handles serious felony cases, providing informal mentoring to younger prosecutors, and serves on a national committee dealing with the prosecution of child physical abuse cases. He received a bachelor’s degree from Providence College and his law degree from American University Washington College of Law.
Alex V. Hernandez of Bridgeport: Hernandez is a member of Pullman & Comley’s Litigation Department and chair of its White Collar, Criminal Defense and Corporate Investigations Section. Previously, he was the Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Fairfield County office of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut, where he supervised 12 attorneys and six support personnel in the investigation and prosecution of criminal tax fraud, white collar crime, fraud, public corruption, computer-related offenses, theft of trade secrets, and violent felonies. He received a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and his law degree from Stanford.
