Rachel 'Ruchie' Freier was born 2 April 1965 in Borough Park, Brooklyn — the eldest of five children. Her mother is Sara Klein Gluck, the eldest daughter of Jenő Klein (Zeidy Laci's brother), making Rachel Tatty's first-cousin-once-removed and Eli's second-cousin-once-removed.
Rachel began her career as a paralegal, working her way up while supporting her husband Tzvi David Freier — a Bobover Hasid — through his Talmudic studies in kollel. She enrolled at Touro College at 30, earned her law degree from Brooklyn Law School in 2005, and built a real-estate and estate practice in Borough Park while raising six children.
In November 2016 she was elected NYC Civil Court Judge for the Kings County 5th judicial district — the first Hasidic woman elected to public office in United States history. Assigned to Brooklyn Criminal Court, she leaned on years of pro-bono work with at-risk Hasidic youth to bring an unusual lens to the bench.
In January 2023 she was appointed Acting Supreme Court Justice. On 7 November 2023 she was elected NY State Supreme Court Justice in her own right, and on 15 November 2023 New York Attorney General Letitia James swore her in at Brooklyn Law School — making Rachel the first Hasidic woman to serve on the New York State Supreme Court. Holocaust survivors attended the swearing-in.
Beyond the bench, Rachel founded Chasdei Devorah, Inc. (in memory of a young friend who passed) and B'Derech (a GED program for at-risk Hasidic youth), and helped found Ezras Nashim, an all-female Orthodox EMT corps in Borough Park that earned EMS Agency of the Year in 2017. She is also a licensed paramedic. In 2017 the Jerusalem Post ranked her #40 on its list of the 50 Most Influential Jews in the world.
Rachel “Ruchie” Freier (b. 2 April 1965, Borough Park) — daughter of Sara Klein Gluck, granddaughter of Jenő Klein, second cousin once removed to Eli (Klein side). NY State Supreme Court Justice; first Hasidic woman to serve on the court (sworn in November 2023). First Hasidic woman ever elected to public office in U.S. history (NYC Civil Court Judge, 2016). Founder of Chasdei Devorah, B'Derech, and Ezras Nashim. Wikipedia ↗
From civil records, family memory, and primary sources. Empty rows are research targets.
The generations they stood between.
The records, memories, and sources behind each claim.
The Klein × Weisz Archive is a multi-generational record of two Hungarian Jewish lines, joined by Bobby and Laci’s marriage in 1952.