Prominent defense attorney Midwin Charles, who also served as a legal analyst for CNN and MSNBC, has passed away at the age of 47. The founder of Midwin Charles & Associates law firm died on Tuesday, and it was announced by her family on Twitter, but no cause of death has been disclosed at this time. The news of Charles' death has led many of her friends and colleagues to take to social media and praise the television personality.
The family of Midwin Charles used her Twitter account to post about the sad news of her passing, and had this to say about it:
Charles' death was noted to be "untimely," and friend and fellow CNN and MSNBC legal eagle Dean Obeidallah also posted online after hearing the news, and noted in his tribute to her that he'd recently wished her "a speedy recovery" for a serious illness:
Heartbroken my friend Midwin Charles has passed. I literally emailed her 2 days ago wishing her a speedy recovery, telling her I "miss chatting with you" on my show. She responded but never shared how serious the illness was. I will always remember her as a kind, beautiful person.
In addition to her time on CNN and MSNBC, Midwin Charles also provided on-air legal analysis for The Wendy Williams Show, HLN, Bloomberg TV, and TV One, did daily commentary for live trials on truTV, and also wrote for Essence and The Huffington Post. Charles also acted as guest host for New York's 107.5 WBLS radio show Express Yourself, and created Infinite Possibilities of the Law Degree, a yearly forum which featured top attorneys who'd been able to turn their law degrees into diverse, dynamic careers.
MSNBC national correspondent Joy Reid also took to social media to post a loving tribute to Midwin Charles, along with a photo of the two together, noting:
According to her website, Charles also lectured at her alma mater, Syracuse University, and was very active in community affairs, having served as a member of the Dean's Diversity Council for American University's Washington College of Law, as well as being on the board of the Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network and being a member of the Civil Rights Committee for the Association of the Bar of the City of New York. CEO of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, Bernice King, also came out to pay tribute to Midwin Charles and her work:
I’m saddened to learn of the death of Midwin Charles. My heart goes out to those mourning her here and to her family. From what people are sharing, her life was a light that brightened the way for others. Well-lived.
As tributes for Midwin Charles continue to pour in, those of us at CinemaBlend are keeping her family and friends in our thoughts while they go through this difficult time.
