Prosecutor Robert J. Carroll

Morris County Prosecutor Robert J. Carroll is a veteran attorney, having held numerous, sensitive law enforcement positions in New Jersey state and county government during his over four decades of public and private service.  Starting as an Essex County Investigator in the early 1970s, Carroll later went to law school  and became an Essex County Assistant Prosecutor. He initially worked in the Trial and Appellate sections, and later served as Assistant Prosecutor/Supervisor of the Organized Crime and Special Prosecutions section in that agency.  In 1980, he was selected to become a Deputy Attorney General in the elite Special Prosecutions section of the NJ Division of Criminal Justice, a unit he later headed. As a Deputy Attorney General, Carroll investigated and prosecuted major illegal drug operations and Organized Crime enterprises and specialized in electronic surveillance and undercover operations.

Thereafter, Carroll was appointed in 1986 to a Supervising Deputy Attorney General, in the Statewide Organized Crime and Racketeering Task Force (OCRTF) in the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General.  He was later promoted to task force Chief/Assistant Attorney General in 1989. In that capacity, Carroll investigated and prosecuted major New Jersey criminal enterprises and public corruption. The OCRTF successfully investigated and prosecuted hundreds of organized crime members, associates and their criminal “crews.”  Among the convictions of major figures, Carroll’s unit investigated, tried and secured a conviction of the infamous “Iceman” killer, Richard Kuklinski, for several brutal murders. This case has been popularized in pop culture and media. He also led investigations into five La Cosa Nostra Crime families and personally prosecuted the hierarchy of the New Jersey Lucchese Crime Family, achieving a major RICO-murder conviction. 

Throughout his career, Carroll focused on developing investigational harmony and avoiding conflicts in prosecutions and field level operations. For his leadership role in organized crime cases and his efforts to create effective interagency team building, he has received numerous outstanding performance awards from many agencies, including the FBI, NJ State Police, Secret Service, N.J. Division of Criminal Justice, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Attorney’s Office, ATF, the Federal Organized Crime Strike Force, and numerous Prosecutor’s Offices.

Carroll has acted as an instructor for a number of law enforcement institutions, including the New Jersey State Police Academy and the Essex County Police Academy, and has educated hundreds of state and tribal leaders in law enforcement and anti-corruption methods.  Before his current appointment as Morris County Prosecutor, Carroll served as Director of the Law Department for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, the largest toll road authority in North America. He previously also served as Acting Sussex County Prosecutor.  He also supervised thousands of background investigations while serving as a Chairman of a Gaming Commission and Compliance Officer for major Native American Gaming Facilities. 

Carroll earned a Bachelor’s Degree from Wake Forest University, where he was a scholarship football player. He holds a J.D. from the Seton Hall University School of Law and is a member of the New Jersey State and Federal Bars.  He also holds an Executive Certificate for Leadership Development from Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations.