Richie Roberts - Biography

Richard M. "Richie" Roberts (born June 23, 1929) is a former detective, Essex County Prosecutor and is currently a defense attorney. He is most widely recognized for the arrest, prosecution and later defense of Harlem drug lord Frank Lucas.

Career

Roberts is a Bronx native of Jewish background who was raised in Newark, New Jersey. Roberts was raised by his grandparents in the Bronx until he moved to Newark with his parents when he was eight years old. He attended Weequahic High School, where he was a star football and baseball player. Roberts served for six years in the United States Marine Corps after high school and reached the rank of sergeant. He later enrolled at Upsala College in East Orange, New Jersey, but flunked out his senior year due to poor attendance. He later completed his undergraduate work at Rutgers University and received his law degree from the Seton Hall University School of Law. An Essex County detective since 1963, Roberts eventually became an Essex County Assistant Prosecutor, heading the Bureau of Narcotics after passing the New Jersey Bar Examination in August 1971. After working as a prosecutor, Roberts became a criminal defense attorney, and still worked as one as of 2010. The first person he defended was Frank Lucas.

In media

Roberts was portrayed by Russell Crowe in the 2007 film American Gangster.

See also

Notes

• Interview by Charlie Rose of Frank Lucas, Ritchie Roberts and others
• Article about Richie Roberts at lawcrossing.com (engl.)
• Unlikely friendship piques Hollywood interest
• A New Jersey Crime Story’s Hollywood Ending