Judge Robert Russell is an Associate Judge for Buffalo City Court and serves by appointment as an Erie County Court Judge. Judge Russell has been presiding over Treatment Courts since December of 1995, having created Buffalo’s Drug Treatment Court and subsequently its Mental Health Treatment Court, and its Veterans Treatment Court during the course of his tenure. In January of 2008, he created and began presiding over this Country’s first “Veterans Treatment Court”. His work in the Treatment Court field led to his induction into the “Hall of Fame” of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals, and the “Hall of Fame” of Justice for Vets. He is the recipient of the “2014 White House Advocates for Action Award”, presented by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), and is the recipient of Awards of Merit from the American Bar Association, New York State Bar Association, and the Erie County Bar Association.