With a deep desire to become an immigration lawyer, Melanie Cradle had an opportunity while in law school to work on a case that impacted her life forever.

While a senior at Seton Hall University School of Law in 1998, Cradle represented Cecelia Jeffrey, who served several years in prison for transporting drugs from her native Liberia to the United States. Cradle, with help from the law school's clinic, did a lot of asylum matters while in college. None meant more than the Jeffrey case. Those who know and work with the judge say it heralded the start of a career that showed she was on the path to becoming a caring, respected and valued member of the state's judiciary.

Cradle, now a New Haven Superior Court judge, had followed the saga of Jeffrey, and believed the federal Immigration and Naturalization Service had done an injustice in unlawfully holding her after her time was served.

"I was lead counsel in getting her released, and I was recognized for it," Cradle said. "I got to know her and her family, and I established, to this day, a close relationship with her."

The Jeffrey experience, Cradle said, "showed me that I had the drive, the ability and desire to make a difference in people's lives. That motivated me moving forward."

Cradle never became an immigration lawyer, primarily, she said, because of a lack of opportunities in law firms specializing in the type immigration law she wanted to practice. But with an emphasis on wanting to help people, Cradle said she did the next best thing: become a prosecutor.

After two years working for a general practice law firm in Hartford, Cradle began a 13-year stint as a prosecutor. She's been a Superior Court judge since 2013.

"I believe you can make a greater difference as a prosecutor," Cradle said. "Prosecutors can control charges, and decide whether or not to prosecute a case. You are in a better position to control or guide what happens to individuals."

The job of a lifetime, however, came when then-Gov. Dannel Malloy appointed Cradle to the Connecticut Superior Court.

"I enjoy so much of what I am doing now," said Cradle, who noted that mentorships along the way have made a world of difference in the type of judge she is.

Cradle, a Queens, New York, native who now lives in Durham, mentors judges as part of a program the state Judicial District put forward. She has mentored about eight judges in six years, and says it's a role she relishes.

The judges, who like Cradle all handle criminal matters, "have a lot of questions," Cradle said.

"I'd invite them to watch me on the bench, spend time with them at lunch, and check on how they are doing," she said. "I try to be a sounding board, and also want to make them feel as comfortable as they can in transitioning to be a judge."

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'That kind of person'

Cradle herself has had several mentors, including former Connecticut Supreme Court Associate Justice Lubbie Harper Jr. and current Associate Justice Maria Araujo Kahn. The advice she got from both, Cradle said, made her not just a better judge, but a better person.

Kahn, who first met Cradle in 2013, said, "I was assigned her mentor, but she was so bright that she did not need one. She has excellent judgment, is a good listener and has excellent temperament. She's very calm. She was made to be a judge. She is that kind of person."

Echoing those sentiments was Harper, who told the Connecticut Law Tribune that his mentee "is highly analytical and principled."

"She firmly believes in treating everyone, regardless of their station in life, with dignity and respect," Harper said. "She is a rising star in our profession."

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