Eugene Nickerson

Eugene Hoffman Nickerson (August 2, 1918 – January 1, 2002) was the Democratic county executive of Nassau County, New York, from 1962 until 1970. Nickerson was the only Democrat to be elected county executive in Nassau County until 2001. Later, as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, he presided over a challenge to the Pentagon's "Don't ask, don't tell" policy on homosexuality and the notorious Abner Louima police brutality case in New York. Nickerson was nominated by President Jimmy Carter on August 16, 1977, to a seat vacated by Orrin Judd. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on October 20, 1977, and received his commission on October 21, 1977. He assumed senior status on January 1, 1994, which he continued until his death on January 1, 2002. Early life and education Nickerson was a descendant both of the Nickerson family of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and of President John Quincy Adams. His mother, né Ruth Constance Comstock (1891–1988), was from Orange, New Jersey. She gave birth to three sons: Schuyler, Eugene and Adams. His father, Hoffman Nickerson (1888–1965), was an Army officer, state legislator, and historian who wrote The turning point of the Revolution; or, Burgoyne in America concerning the Saratoga campaign.