Passaic Prosecutor's Office

Michael J. DeMarco was made the acting Deputy First Assistant Prosecutor of Passaic County on August 3, 2015 until he was sworn in as the Deputy First Assistant Prosecutor on October 2, 2015. Prior to that, he was the Chief Assistant Prosecutor of the Major Crimes Unit. He was the supervisor of the Homicide and Vehicular Homicide Units. He oversaw over a hundred homicide investigations. In 2003, DeMarco successfully prosecuted a former New York Giant defensive tackle for his role in the death of a four year old child of his paramour. In 2004, DeMarco tried the first Bloods Gang motive homicide in Passaic County. The defendant was convicted of murder as an accomplice and received a fifty year New Jersey State Prison term. In 2005, DeMarco successfully prosecuted three co-defendants for murder during a trial which lasted two months.

In May 2008, DeMarco was promoted to Director of the Narcotics Task Force and he was officially sworn-in as Chief Assistant Prosecutor of the Narcotics Task Force in January 2009 where he served until May 2012. Mr. DeMarco supervised teams of detectives and prosecutors who through wiretapping and extensive investigative techniques sought to disrupt the flow of narcotics into the state and Passaic County. During his tenure within the Narcotics Task Force the unit successfully seized hundreds of kilos of cocaine, heroin, and crystal meth, as well as the seizure of in excess of a million dollars in drug proceeds. The Narcotics Task Force also focused on the interdiction of illegal firearms, successfully removing over a hundred illegal firearms off of the streets of Paterson. |

In May 2012, DeMarco became Chief of the Major Crimes Unit. Additionally, he acted as the legal advisor to the Paterson Police Cease Fire Unit. His duties also included the investigation of all police-involved shootings. These police-involved shootings culminated in presentation to the grand jury to determine if the use of force by the officer was justified pursuant to New Jersey law. In 2013, DeMarco successfully prosecuted Jerome Wright for the murder of Newark Police Detective Michael Morgan. 

His lifetime law enforcement career began in 1994 when he joined the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office. He has been assigned to the Juvenile and Domestic Violence Unit, the Trial Unit, the Homicide Unit, the Narcotics Task Force, and the Major Crimes Unit. 

He is a Certified Police Instructor and often lectures at the Passaic County Police Academy. He lectures throughout New Jersey on Strict Liability Drug Induced Death as part of the New Jersey Attorney General’s Heroin and Opiate Task Force Initiative. 

He is a participant in the New Jersey State Bar Foundation Speaker’s Bureau. He has lectured at Paterson Public Schools, West Milford Macopin Middle School, Dover High School, Passaic County Technical High School, Newark Public Schools, and Essex Academy High School.