Dr. Richard A. Amato - RIP

A good man's life ended unexpectedly this week. Long time Merrick Podiatrist Dr. Richard A. Amato's life came to an unexpected and tragically unnecessary end on Tuesday, April 30, 2013. You see Dr. Amato could take the pain and abuse no longer. I was a continent away when I received and email from Dr. Amato's current matrimonial attorney, Raymond Catanzano, that Dr. Amato's life came to a tragic end on the day before the trial on his highly contentious divorce from his second wife, Janet Love-Amato was scheduled to begin trial on May 1, 2013 in Suffolk Supreme Court, before Justice Carol Mackenzie. I wondered what to write and how to write as a dispassionate reporter about a man I knew and whose life I watched this past 2 years spiral out of control as he tried desperately to come to grips with the horror and abuse he endured resulting from the actions of his divorce and abandonment by those he thought would be his support system. I met Dr. Amato when he was desperate...he was displeased that his former matrimonial lawyer was not as responsive to his questions and Dr. Amato had no understanding what was happening.... Dr. Amato's downward dissent started when his own former matrimonial attorney turned on him one day, disparaging him (his client) and leading Suffolk County Judge Carol Mackenzie to believe that Dr. Amato (his own client) was not being truthful. From that day on in 2010 going forward, the Judge in my opinion and that of the many who I brought in to assist Dr. Amato, abused her discretion and treated him with disdain, rudeness, arrogance, bias and prejudice in her court conferences and rulings on his case. Dr. Amato's wife in 2010 sought a divorce and applied to the court for temporary spousal support despite the fact that she made in excess of $90,000 a year, had no children with him and the mortgage on their home, was held by her very wealthy father. The Judge paid little attention to the papers in opposition to her application seeking support and Ordered Dr. Amato to pay his wife $5,000 per month. When Dr. AMato could not meet those payments, as well as the rent on his office, living expenses, business expenses and the like, his wife, asked the court to hold him in contempt for failing to make these $5,000 per month payments and Judge Carol Mackenzie not only gave her a money judgment but also incarcerated Dr. Richard Amato in the Suffolk county jail system for 3 months. For those of you who believe we no longer has a debtor's prison....in all other areas that is true..expect in a divorce action. For you see, though Dr. Amato showed his expenses, he was not believed. Judge Mackenzie used her discretion to decide that Dr. Amato must be lying about his money..she ordered he pay $5,000 and if he did not he would go to jail. And so he did...December 2011, Christmas time, he was Ordered by the Judge to come to court in January 2012 and turn himself in to begin his 3 month sentence with rapists, drug addicts, murderers in the Riverhead County Jail. And in January 2012 that sentence began. Embarrassed, Dr. Amato did not tell his patients, many of whom are from Merrick and we all tried to get his sentence commuted or his early release to no avail.....to this day, the patients of Merrick have no idea that the reason they could not reach him was not because he simply "took off." but because Judge Carol MacKenzie upon the application of his wife had him incarcerated. effectively destroying his practice and ability to earn a living. One major problem with the Judges decision which is currently on appeal with the Appellate division 2nd department is that once the judge gave the wife a money judgment for the money that Dr. AMato was unable to pay, she legally could not also throw him in jail......but Judge Mackenzie did it anyway. Judge Mackenzie new that Dr. AMato's life would be further destroyed, knew that her ruling was against the law, but her bias against him, her desire to hurt him outweighed what was legal, right and ethically proper. She knew even if he would appeal, it would be years before a decision came in and he would do this time and he would loose his business, his money, his office, at 65 his ability to rebuild his life. Judge Carol Mackenzie, at the request of Dr. Amato's wife did it anyway. Abandoned by his family, bankrupt, facing a trial for the divorce, facing once again a jail sentence for his failure to afford to pay this support, thrown out of his office, no medical practice, lost his car, and at 63 unable to consider how to re-build his life, Dr. Richard Amato, took control over his life and ended his suffering. A funeral mass, officiated by Father Charles Mangano was held on Monday, May 6, 2013 at Cure of Ars Roman Catholic Church. Father Charles, a compassionate man of God, who was inspirational in his consoling and guidance to Dr. Amato, gave an impassioned eulogy and was heard to say "he didn't realize how difficult this was going to be" while giving his sermon. Attended by approximately 60 mourners, noteworthy was his family who in life paid him little mind but in death came to the service with the young grandchildren who Dr. Amato had not been permitted to see these two years. Dr. Richard A. Amato, a long time member of the Merrick Community, a podiatrist admired by his Merrick patients, a long time member of the Kiwanis Club, active member of Cure of Ars parish, father, grandfather and friend seeing no hope for his future, ended his suffering in this life on Tuesday, April 30, 2013 Dr. Kim Lurie Alliance to Restore Integrity in Divorce President "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead