Dominick Leonard DiCarlo (March 11, 1928 – April 27, 1999) was an American lawyer and politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He was a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

from 1965 to 1981;

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

's first

Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics Matters Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs is a position of the United States government within the Department of State that heads the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs ...

from 1981 to 1984; and a

United States Judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

of the

United States Court of International Trade The United States Court of International Trade (case citations: Int'l Trade or Intl. Trade) is a U.S. federal court that adjudicates civil actions arising out of U.S. customs and international trade laws. Seated in New York City, it exercises ...

from 1984 to 1999.

Early life and education

DiCarlo was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

on March 11, 1928, and raised in the

Bay Ridge Bay Ridge is a neighborhood in the southwest corner of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by Sunset Park to the north, Dyker Heights to the east, the Narrows and the Belt Parkway to the west, and Fort Hamilton Army Base and ...

neighborhood. He was educated at St. John's College, receiving a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1950. He then attended the

St. John's University School of Law St. John's University School of Law is a Roman Catholic law school in Jamaica, Queens, New York, United States, affiliated with St. John's University. The School of Law was founded in 1925, and confers Juris Doctor degrees and degrees for Maste ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

in 1953. He was admitted to the bar in 1954. He completed his education at the

New York University School of Law New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in New ...

, receiving a

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

in 1957.

Career

A practicing attorney since 1954, in 1959 he became an Assistant

United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York is the chief federal law enforcement officer in five New York counties: Kings (Brooklyn), Queens, Richmond (Staten Island), Nassau and Suffolk. The current U.S. Attorney is Breon ...

. In this capacity, in 1960 he became Chief of the Organized Crime and Racketeering Section. He left the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...

in 1962. From 1962 to 1965, he was counsel to the minority leader of the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five Borough (New York City), boroughs. The council serves as a check against the Mayor of New York City, mayor in a may ...

New York State Legislative service

DiCarlo was a member of the

from 1965 to 1981, sitting in the 175th, 176th, 177th, 178th, 179th, 180th, 181st, 182nd, 183rd and

184th New York State Legislature The 184th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 7, 1981, to December 31, 1982, during the seventh and eighth years of Hugh Carey's governorship, in Albany. Backgro ...

s. He was Vice Chairman of the New York Joint Legislative Committee on Crime from 1969 to 1970; Chairman of the Assembly Committee on Codes and an ''

ex officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...

'' member of the

New York Law Revision Commission The New York State Law Revision Commission is the oldest continuous agency in the common law world devoted to law reform through legislation. Legal mandate The Law Revision Commission was created by Chapter 597 of the Laws of 1934 which enacted Ar ...

and the

Judicial Conference of the State of New York The Judicial Conference of the State of New York is an institution of the New York State Unified Court System responsible for surveying current practice in the administration of the state's courts, compiling statistics, and suggesting legislation ...

from 1971 to 1974; and Vice Chairman of the Select Committee on Correctional Institutions and Programs (appointed in the wake of the

Attica Prison riot The Attica Prison Riot, also known as the Attica Prison Rebellion, the Attica Uprising, or the Attica Prison Massacre, took place at the state prison in Attica, New York; it started on September 9, 1971, and ended on September 13 with the high ...

) from 1972 to 1973 In 1973, he was the only Republican in the State Assembly who voted against the

Rockefeller drug laws The Rockefeller Drug Laws are the statutes dealing with the sale and possession of "narcotic" drugs in the New York State Penal Law. The laws are named after Nelson Rockefeller, who was the state's governor at the time the laws were adopted. Rock ...

. From 1975 to 1978, he was Deputy Minority Leader of the New York State Assembly.

State Department service

In July 1981, President

announced his intention to nominate DiCarlo as

. Following

Senate confirmation Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive branch of a government enacts something previo ...

, DiCarlo held this office from September 25, 1981, to July 13, 1984. He spent much of his time in office trying to persuade foreign leaders to supplant fields of

opium poppies Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which i ...

with other crops.

Federal judicial service

On May 25, 1984, President

nominated DiCarlo to replace Judge Bernard Newman of the

. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on June 8 and received his commission on June 11. President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

designated DiCarlo to serve as

Chief Judge A chief judge (also known as presiding judge, president judge or principal judge) is the highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge. According to the Federal judiciary of the United States, th ...

in 1991, a position he held until October 31, 1996, at which time he assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

Death and honors

DiCarlo died on April 27, 1999, after suffering a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

while exercising in the gym at the James L. Watson Court of International Trade Building. The Annual DiCarlo Lecture in International Law at John Marshall Law School is named in his honor.

Family

DiCarlo was married to Esther DiCarlo, born Esther Hansen, and the father of sons Vincent, Carl, and Robert, and a daughter Barbara. His youngest son

Robert DiCarlo Robert J. "Bob" DiCarlo is a former Republican Party lawmaker from Brooklyn, New York who served in the New York State Senate from 1993 to 1996 representing Bay Ridge in Brooklyn as well as Staten Island's East Shore. He is the son of former New Y ...

was a New York State Senator from 1993 to 1997. After Esther died, he was married to Susan DiCarlo, born Susan Hauck.

References

President Reagan's Nomination of DiCarlo as Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics Matters

* * ttp://www.dicarlolaw.com/dld/index.html Dominick L. DiCarlo -- The Last Really Good Politiciana short biography by one of his sons. {{DEFAULTSORT:DiCarlo, Dominick L. 1928 births 1999 deaths American people of Italian descent Assistant United States Attorneys Politicians from Brooklyn Judges of the United States Court of International Trade Republican Party members of the New York State Assembly New York University School of Law alumni St. John's University School of Law alumni United States Assistant Secretaries of State 20th-century American judges 20th-century American politicians United States federal judges appointed by Ronald Reagan