Summary: NYU hosts memorial for Daniel Markel, the law professor who was mysteriously murdered in July.
A spontaneous memorial service has been held for Daniel Markel, the former scholar-in-residence at NYU’s Law School, who also taught at Florida State University. The well-beloved professor was shot dead on July 18, after dropping his two preschoolers off at school. The reason for the crime, the identity of the assailants, or any explanation of why and how this tragedy took place has been left unanswered.
The memorial for Markel was held on September 9th, after the chief love officer of the Jewish Montessori Society, Daniel Petter-Lipstein, who had attended Harvard University with him 20 years prior, set up the event.
“It’s a horrible tragedy that we have to do this at all and that it happened, but in terms of getting [the memorial] together, it was fairly smooth,” Petter-Lipstein said, as the Washington Square News reported. “I had a lot of help from his colleagues at NYU.”
Those who worked with Markel spoke warmly of him, with law professor James Jacobs saying, “I always looked forward to Dan’s monthly visits. He was warm, witty, creative, and smart. He was a wonderful participant in our weekly criminal law faculty seminar. He is already much missed.”
Known for his blog for legal academics, PrawfsBlawg, and for connecting people together, the seeming senseless death of the beloved father and professor unnerves many of those who knew and loved him.
“The initial shock and deep grief has given away to more feelings of sorrow and loss,” said Manuel Utset, associate dean for academic affairs at the FSU College of Law. “You can imagine when a tragedy like this hits, that things will change. No one could have imagined a month ago that something like this could occur.”
That feeling of uncertainty, when the vertices of our normal life are shifted, and we come to understand that we can’t absolutely expect everybody in our life will remain there, or that the everyday moving of events is impervious to tragedy and outrage, strikes deepest to those in the event. It is, nevertheless, a worthy consideration for us all.
“It was a pleasure having Dan as a scholar-of-residence in 2011 and as a regular participant in school events even after that,” said faculty director of CACL. “He was a wonderful colleague and friend, and we will miss him greatly. He will live on in our hearts, and we will continue to teach and learn from his scholarship.”
Florida State University will host its own memorial for Markel on Sept. 16. At 3 p.m.