Paul D. Colangelo

Biography

In 2023, Paul joined DeCosmo Law as an Associate Attorney. Paul has been practicing law for 30 years. He served two County Prosecutors over the course of a 25-year career from which he recently retired, working as an Assistant Prosecutor, Trial Section Chief, Deputy First Assistant Prosecutor, and First Assistant Prosecutor. In those capacities, Paul tried over 60 cases, prosecuting individuals charged with possession and/or distribution of drugs, aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault, vehicular homicide, assault by auto, kidnapping, aggravated assault, official misconduct, robbery and murder. He is Certified by the New Jersey Supreme Court as a Criminal Trial Attorney. There are over 40,000 Attorneys in the State of New Jersey. Less than three hundred (300) have been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Certified Criminal Trial Attorney. The Supreme Court vets attorneys to ensure that only those with substantial criminal trial experience receive the designation, obtaining as part of this process superior references from both judges and opposing counsel, and administering a comprehensive written examination on the subject of criminal trial law which the attorney must pass.

Before beginning as a career prosecutor in New Jersey, Paul served for 4 years in the United States Air Force as an Assistant Staff Judge Advocate assigned to Pope Air Force Base in North Carolina. He dedicated the first two years of his assignment to military prosecution, the latter two to defense. Paul prosecuted and/or defended both enlisted and officer personnel charged domestic violence assault, possession and/or distribution of drugs, rape, theft, as well as military-specific crimes such as desertion.

Paul has extensive experience in litigation. After graduating from the Rutgers University School of Law in Camden, New Jersey, he became a Superior Court Judicial Law Clerk to the Honorable George H. Stanger, Jr., in the Criminal Part. After completing his military service, Paul was hired as an Assistant Prosecutor in the Salem County Prosecutor’s Office, prosecuting both juvenile and adult cases to verdict. He continued as a career prosecutor with the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office, continuously trying cases, but also serving as Legal Advisor to the major investigative units of that office, specifically the Major Crimes, Narcotics, Sexual Assault, and Professional Standards, or Internal Affairs, Units. Paul’s deep experience with each of these units provides him with knowledge of police investigative tactics and techniques, forensic interviewing techniques, Fourth Amendment search and seizure procedure for challenging illegal searches and seizures by the police, and police disciplinary issues.

Education

• Rutgers School of Law - Camden, Camden, New Jersey
  • J.D. - 1992
• University of Scranton, Scranton, Pennsylvania
  • B.S. - 1989
  • Honors: magna cum laude

Professional Associations

• Gloucester County Bar Association

Bar Admission

• New Jersey
• Pennsylvania
• U.S. District Court District of New Jersey

Current Employment Position

• Associate Attorney