The Honorable Daniel Joseph DiBenedetto, retired Asbury Park Municipal Court Judge, passed away on Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023, peacefully at home, with his family by his side. Dan was born in Newark, New Jersey on October 15, 1949, to parents Filomena (née DeBenedetto) and Arsenio DiBenedetto. Dan grew up in Orange, NJ and summered in Spring Lake, NJ for over fifty years. He graduated from Orange High School in 1967, the University of Maryland in 1971 and the University of Baltimore Law School in 1974 where he was the Editor of the law school newspaper. Dan was admitted to the New Jersey Bar Association in 1974 and was a member of the New York and District of Columbia Bar Associations as well. He joined Toner, Kuttner & Toner Law Firm in Newark and Livingston, NJ in 1974, and eventually became a managing partner of the Firm, which evolved to Toner & DiBenedetto, located in Roseland, NJ. Dan was appointed Assistant City Attorney for Orange in 1976, and he was appointed as the youngest City Attorney in the country in 1978 at the age of 28. In 1984, Dan was appointed as Business Administrator for the City of Orange, and in 1986 was named Municipal Court Judge for the City of Orange. Judge DiBenedetto lived in Orange until moving to Manhattan in 1980 where he had a penchant for theater and opera and was President of his co-op board for more than thirty years. In 1999, he moved to Asbury Park, splitting his time between Asbury Park and Manhattan, to take part in the renaissance of Asbury Park and begin a new chapter of his civic life. He became a member and subsequently Director of the Urban Enterprise Zone Board and Chairman of the City Planning Board in Asbury Park. He also joined the Greater Asbury Park Chamber of Commerce and was President of the Chamber for ten years. During his tenure, the Chamber tripled in membership. Judge DiBenedetto received the Asbury Park Chamber of Commerce Carousel Award in 2011 in recognition of outstanding and invaluable service to the community and the Lifetime Honoree Award in 2017. He was an important figure in the revitalization of Asbury Park. In 2011, Judge DiBenedetto was appointed Municipal Court Judge of Asbury Park, until he retired in 2021. For his distinguished service he received several awards, including recognition from the Orange Municipal Court in 1989 for his superb ability as a judge and more recently from the Monmouth Municipal Judges Association in 2022 in appreciation of years of effort, devotion, and service to the Association. In addition, he was a member of the West Essex chapter of the Sons of Italy, where he was president for twenty years and in 1985 awarded the Man of the Year award for lifetime achievement for the Italian American community. His insatiable zest for life was palpable. He loved to travel, entertain, and socialize. He was passionate about defending animal rights and presided over a widely viewed case of an abused dog, which led him to rescue a pit bull named Sadie.   Judge DiBenedetto is survived by his sister Marguerite Brennan, brother Joseph (Shannon) DiBenedetto, nieces and nephews, Kimberly (Michael) Codella, Joanna (Joseph DiMuzio) DiBenedetto, Arsenio (Sarah DeFilippis) DiBenedetto and Celeste DiBenedetto along with seven great nieces and nephews. Dan is predeceased by his brother-in-law, Peter Brennan and nephew, Jeffrey Brennan. In addition, he has a large family of cousins. In honor of Judge DiBenedetto, a celebration of life event will take place later this year. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent in Judge DiBenedetto’s memory to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) https://www.aspca.org/ or the Monmouth County SPCA https://monmouthcountyspca.org/
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