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ARMONK, N.Y. North Castle town justice Elyse Lazansky, who was sworn in for a third term Tuesday after winning 83 percent of the vote in the November election to defeat Douglas Martino, adjudicates a variety of crimes.
"It's not just traffic court," she said. "There's single assaults, drunk driving, domestic violence and theft."
She also adjudicates felonies that pass through the North Castle court on their way to Superior Court. "I arraign them and set bail," she said.
She also handles a variety of civil cases, which range from contractors suing for unpaid bills to homeowners suing contractors. She handles suits that are less than $3,000.
Lazansky also handles residential and commercial landlord/tenant disputes.
She said 85 percent of the cases she handles are criminal but there are also town ordinance violations, such as cutting down trees without permits, performing home renovations without permits or even leaving garbage out too long that leads to neighbor complaints.
Lazansky says North Castle residents are law abiding for the most part and the majority of cases she handles involve people who live out of town.
Lazansky is starting her third four-year term as a North Castle town justice. She served as a prosecutor in the Westchester District Attorney Office for 13 years, including two in Armonk, where she specialized in domestic violations, sex crimes and child abuse.
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