Frederick Bernard Lacey (September 9, 1920 – April 1, 2017) was a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...

of the

United States District Court for the District of New Jersey The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (in case citations, D.N.J.) is a federal court in the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, Third Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. gover ...

Education and career

Lacey was born in Newark,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

in 1920 to Frederick Robert and Mary Agnes (Armstrong) Lacey. His father served as police chief for Newark. After attending West Side High School, he received an Artium Baccalaureus degree from

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

in 1941, and a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

from

Cornell Law School Cornell Law School is the law school of Cornell University, a private university, private, Ivy League university in Ithaca, New York. One of the five Ivy League law schools, Cornell Law School offers four degree programs (Juris Doctor, JD, Maste ...

in 1948. He was a

United States Navy Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2004, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called reservists, are categorized as being in either the S ...

Lieutenant Commander from 1942 to 1946. He married Mary C. Stoneham on May 20, 1944. Lacey was in private practice in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

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

from 1948 to 1951; in Newark from 1951 to 1952; and again in New York City from 1952 to 1953. He was an

Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gov ...

of the District of New Jersey from 1953 to 1955. In 1954 he led the case that sent the mobster

Albert Anastasia Umberto "Albert" Anastasia (, ; né Anastasio ; September 26, 1902 – October 25, 1957) was an Italian-American mobster, hitman and crime boss. One of the founders of the modern American Mafia, and a co-founder and later boss of the Murder, In ...

to prison for income tax evasion. He returned to private practice as a partner with the law firm of Shanley & Fisher in Newark from 1955 to 1969. In 1969, Lacey was appointed

United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey The U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey is the chief federal law enforcement officer in New Jersey. Since March 24, 2025, Alina Habba has served as acting U.S. attorney. The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey has jurisd ...

by President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

. As U.S. Attorney, his

Glen Ridge, New Jersey Glen Ridge is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 7,802, an increase of 275 (+3.7%) from the 2010 United St ...

home was protected by Marshals Service to protect him and his family from death threats. He served until 1971, leading a series of corruption prosecutions against high-profile figures in politics and organized crime, including against Newark Mayor

Hugh Joseph Addonizio Hugh Joseph Addonizio (January 31, 1914 – February 2, 1981) was an American Democratic Party politician who was sentenced to prison for corruption. He was the 33rd Mayor of Newark, New Jersey, from 1962 to 1970, and a U.S. Congressman from ...

Federal judicial service

On October 7, 1970, Lacey was nominated by President Nixon to a new judgeship on the

created by 84 Stat. 294. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

on October 13, 1970, and received his commission on January 26, 1971. He served on the

United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court The United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), also called the FISA Court, is a United States federal courts, U.S. federal court established under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to oversee requests ...

from 1979 to 1985. Lacey's service was terminated on February 3, 1986, due to his retirement.

Post judicial service

After retiring from the bench Lacey worked for the firm of LeBoeuf, Lamb, Leiby and MacRae. He was appointed a special judicial master overseeing the

International Brotherhood of Teamsters The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of the Team Drivers International Union and the Teamsters National Union, the union now represents a diverse members ...

. In 1992 he was appointed by

United States Attorney General The United States attorney general is the head of the United States Department of Justice and serves as the chief law enforcement officer of the Federal government of the United States, federal government. The attorney general acts as the princi ...

William Barr William Pelham Barr (born May 23, 1950) is an American attorney who served as United States Attorney General, United States attorney general in the administration of President George H. W. Bush from 1991 to 1993 and again in the first adminis ...

to investigate whether the Government mishandled a fraud case involving

Banca Nazionale del Lavoro Banca Nazionale del Lavoro S.p.A. (BNL) is an Italian bank headquartered in Rome. Established in 1913, the bank has been a subsidiary of BNP Paribas since 2006. Integration process was concluded in 2008, BNL with its group oversees the commercial ...

. In 2006, he was appointed to be a federal monitor in an investigation of

Bristol-Myers Squibb The Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, doing business as Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), is an American multinational pharmaceutical company. Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, BMS is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and consist ...

, centering on the distribution of the drug

Plavix Clopidogrel, sold under the brand name Plavix among others, is an antiplatelet medication used to reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke in those at high risk. It is also used together with aspirin in heart attacks and following the pla ...

. The company complied with Lacey's recommendation to remove then CEO Peter R. Dolan.

Death

On April 1, 2017, Lacey died in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

at age 96. On April 17, 2017, New Jersey Governor

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...

signed an Executive Order directing that both United States and New Jersey flags at state departments, offices, and agencies be flown at half-mast on April 19, 2017, in recognition of Lacey's passing. A funeral mass was held for Lacey was held in

Sea Girt, New Jersey Sea Girt is a borough situated on the Jersey Shore, within Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 1,866, an increase of 38 (+2.1%) from the 2010 census count of 1,82 ...

, where he had maintained a residence.Sullivan, Ronald
"Lacey Considered As '77 Candidate"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', August 28, 1975. Accessed November 15, 2018. "Reached for comment at his summer home in Sea Girt, Judge Lacey refused to discuss any speculation about his candidacy."

References

Sources

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lacey, Frederick Bernard 1920 births 2017 deaths Assistant United States attorneys Cornell Law School alumni Judges of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey Judges of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court Lawyers from Newark, New Jersey People from Glen Ridge, New Jersey People from Sea Girt, New Jersey Rutgers University alumni Special prosecutors United States attorneys for the District of New Jersey United States district court judges appointed by Richard Nixon United States Navy officers United States Navy personnel of World War II West Side High School (New Jersey) alumni