Louis Bender

Bender, Louis
March 8, 1910 - Sept. 10, 2009

Louis "Lulu" Bender, 99, of Longboat Key, formerly of Harrison, N.Y., a New York City Basketball Hall of Famer and well-known criminal defense attorney specializing in tax fraud cases, died Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009, after a brief illness.
Bender, who played forward at Columbia College from 1930-1932, was selected to College Humor Monthly's First-Team All-Ivy, All-Met and All-America squads. His partnership with fellow NYC Hall of Fame inductee George Gregory Jr. and the great Sam Schoenfeld led Columbia to Ivy League crowns in 1930 and 31. Bender, who graduated Columbia College in 1932 and Columbia Law School in 1935, continued playing professionally on the Original Celtics, the Union City Reds, the Boston Trojans, the New York Whirlwinds and the American Basketball League.
Bender's basketball play gained the greatest recognition by his induction, at the age of 98, into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame on Sept. 17, 2008, with such other great players as Rod Strickland and Kenny Anderson.
Following his playing days, Bender gained recognition in the courtroom as one of New York City's best trial attorneys, first as an assistant United States attorney in the Southern District of New York in the 1940s, where he assisted in the prosecution of members of the German American Bund during World War II and the owner of the then original and famous "Longchamps" restaurant on Broadway; and then afterwards as a criminal defense attorney, where for over 50 years, he specialized in the trial defense of criminal tax evasion prosecutions. He lectured widely on the subject, wrote numerous articles on criminal defense practice and co-authored the highly regarded "Criminal Aspects of Tax Fraud Cases."
His beloved wife of 75 years, Jean Waterman Bender, survives him, as does his two sons, Michael, a lawyer and associate justice of the Supreme Court of Colorado, and Steven, also a lawyer and prosecutor in Westchester County, N.Y.; his two daughters, Ellyn, an instructor at the University of Tampa, and Golda, a social worker for the state of North Carolina; 11 grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. The Bender's celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary in March of 2009. They were married at New York City Hall during the depression and for their honeymoon trip rode the Staten Island ferry for a nickel. As they did in NYC, they have been frequent attendees at Sarasota's cultural offerings, including musical events at the Van Wezel, the Sarasota Opera and the Asolo Theater. They are longtime members of the Longboat Key Club, where Lou remains a tennis hero as one of the oldest players. The Longboat Key Club held the 2008 Doubles Championship in honor of his 98th birthday.
Respects may be paid to the family at the Bender's residence, 4234 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Apt. AA1, Longboat Key, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13.