Born and raised in Mount Vernon, NY Judge Scarpino attended Mount Vernon High School and graduated with honors from the University of Connecticut. He received his Juris Doctor Degree from Syracuse University College of Law where he was selected the Dean’s Outstanding Student, was President of the Law Student Senate, and was elected to Who’s Who among students in American Universities and Colleges.
Judge Scarpino started his career as an Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of Mount Vernon. In 1977, he became a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), where he worked on many cases, ranging from civil rights violations to bank robberies and kidnappings. C.B.S. “60 Minutes” documented his work that exposed corruption in the school system. As an FBI agent, he was instrumental in apprehending Leon Johnson on the day he was to be placed on the FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitive List.
At the age of thirty-two, he became the youngest Judge in Mount Vernon’s history, appointed by the late Mayer Thomas E. Sharpe. He was elected City Judge in 1985, with the Democratic, Republican, and Conservative parties’ support. Judge Scarpino became Senior City Judge in 1986 and in 1988 he was elected Westchester County Judge on the Democratic line.
Judge Scarpino received numerous awards and accomplishments over the course of his career. He was appointed Acting Supreme Court Justice and was assigned to expand the Special Narcotics Part in the Westchester County Courthouse. In 1993, Judge Scarpino was elected to the New York State Supreme Court for the Ninth Judicial District, covering Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Putnam and Orange counties. He first was assigned to Rockland County and Westchester County to handle Civil parts. Then, in 1998, he was assigned to the Special Matrimonial Part and in 1999 was reassigned to handle criminal and civil cases. In 2000, he was elected Westchester County Surrogate, and in 2006 he was given the additional responsibility of being appointed Supervising Judge of the Matrimonial Part of Westchester County.
In 2006, he was an honoree from the Westchester County Bar Association and was recognized by Lawdragon Magazine as one of the top 500 judges in the United States. In 2007, Judge Scarpino received the Justice for All Award from the Westchester Women’s Bar Association. In 2009, he received the Distinguished Service Award from the Columbian Lawyers association. In 2010, Judge Scarpino was reelected Surrogate. In 2012, he received the Rev. Joseph A. DeSanto, PhD ’66 Criminal Justice Award from Iona College. In 2015, he received the Legal Services of the Hudson Valley “Access to Justice” Award and was recognized by the New York State Trial Lawyers for his Outstanding Contribution to the Administration of Law. In November of 2016, Judge Scarpino was elected District Attorney of Westchester County. In 2015, he stepped down from the Bench to become a partner in the firm DelBello Donnellan Weingarten Wise and Wiederkehr in White Plains.
In 2016, Judge Scarpino was elected District Attorney of Westchester County, supervising a staff of over 240 attorneys, investigators, and support staff. In 2021, he returned to private practice at the law firm of Dorf & Nelson in Rye, NY.
Judge Scarpino believes in passing his knowledge onto other people. He accomplished this through an additional 20-year career as an adjunct professor at numerous colleges, universities, and law schools. He mentored hundreds of students and interns. Judge Scarpino’s adjunct positions included years teaching undergraduate, graduate, and law students at Long Island University, Mercy and Iona College, Westchester Community College and Pace Law School.
Judge Scarpino is a member of the Pace Law School Board of Visitors, a former member of the Office Court Administration Article 81 Guardian Advisory Committee and former Co-Chair of the Ninth Judicial District Pro Bono Committee.
Ultimately, Judge Scarpino has helped and protected countless of people throughout his career. His work and dedication in all of his positions, including sweeping criminal justice reforms during his tenure as Westchester County District Attorney, continue to have an impact today.