Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Breaking News

88-Year-Old Rabbi Injured at Coast Guard Ceremony Can Sue Government

A federal court ruling will allow an 88-year-old New York rabbi to proceed with a negligence lawsuit against the U.S. government.

Judge Margo Brodie of the Brooklyn District Court struck down the federal government’s request for summary judgment in the case of Rabbi William Kloner, who was seriously injured at a 2010 Coast Guard retirement ceremony on Staten Island. Brodie ruled Thursday that an exemption claimed by the government claimed does not apply in the suit by Kloner and his wife, Elizabeth, initially filed in 2013.

Kloner, a retired rear admiral of the New York Naval Militia and part-time Jewish chaplain for U.S. Coast Guard Sector New York, fell while trying to climb a stage with stairs that lacked a handrail in order to deliver a convocation at the ceremony at a private facility.

His plunge of more than 6 feet into an open orchestra pit put him in a coma for several weeks and caused multiple injuries. Since the accident, Kloner has required 24-hour nursing care and is “unable to perform basic activities of daily life without aid from several caretakers,” according to the ruling.

In 2015, the government pressed for summary judgment rather than a full trial, arguing that it should be exempt from liability under legislation that protects the government from certain claims by military employees.

Kloner was a civilian, but according to the government’s argument, he was acting in a military capacity at the time he fell, was wearing an official naval uniform and was performing services related to his contract with the Coast Guard.

Before the accident, Kroner also served as rabbi at Temple Beth Emeth V’ohr Progressive Shaari Zedek, a Reform congregation in Brooklyn.

According to the Staten Island Advance, Kroner served as the rabbi of the synagogue on New York’s Governors Island before the Coast Guard closed the base in 1996.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.