A member of the Connecticut legal community, Wayne Keeney, was remembered Sunday as a longtime defense attorney and state magistrate.

Friends gathered in Bridgeport to remember Keeney, who died last week at 75.

The former New York City police officer was raised in the Bronx before he made his way to Connecticut.

"Wayne just had such good judgment. He would call me up any odd time and give advice, and it was always sound advice. It was always deeply heartfelt," said State Sen. Ryan Fazio.

"Walking around aimlessly in the old Stamford Courthouse, nobody would look at me, nobody would help me. Wayne was the only guy who said, 'what do you need, pal?' And from there he helped me get a job, he helped me get an office," recalled Stamford Attorney Lindy Urso.

"Wayne put you in a position where he thought that you can succeed and thrive, and you wanted to make Wayne proud, and that's all we aspired to do was make Wayne proud," said Norwalk Attorney Mike Skiber.

Friends said Keeney's death marks the end of an era at the Stamford Courthouse.