Carol O'Brien

Carol O’Brien oversees seven “sections” focused on law enforcement/criminal justice: the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy, Special Prosecutions, the Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission, Health Care Fraud, Crime Victims and Criminal Justice.

Before joining the Attorney General’s Office, O’Brien spent 12 years in the Delaware County Prosecutor’s Office, the last eight as the prosecutor and the previous four as assistant prosecutor. During that time, she also served as a special prosecutor in numerous criminal cases in counties throughout the state.

Earlier in her career, O’Brien served as an assistant attorney general in the Attorney General’s Office and as an assistant prosecutor in the Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office. Prior to those roles, she worked as a staff attorney for the clinical programs within the Ohio State University College of Law, for the Neighborhood Legal Assistance Program and for Advocates for Basic Legal Equality.

In 2016, O’Brien was recognized as Ohio’s Outstanding Prosecuting Attorney for her dedication to justice. She has been an active member of the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association for nearly a decade, serving as president in 2019, and has given presentations on a wide range of prosecutorial matters and other legal topics.

O’Brien has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Northwestern University and a law degree from the University of Toledo. She is licensed to practice in Ohio, South Carolina, the Northern and Southern District Courts of Ohio, the District Court of South Carolina, and the 4th and 6th circuits of the U.S. Court of Appeals.

O’Brien and her husband, Bill, live in Delaware County.