Born in Licata, Sicily in 1930, he graduated "cum laude" from the University of Palermo at the age of 21 and came first in the competitive exam for a post of uditore Giudiziario, which he took up on 17 December 1953.
[citation needed] Carnevale was nicknamed l'ammazzasentenze (the sentence-slayer) because of the many convictions of Mafiosi he overturned on appeal.
[1] During the Maxi Trial in the mid 1980s, Carnevale was the president of the first criminal section of the Court of Cassation, however because he was suspected of colluding with the Mafia, he was not appointed as prosecutor and the final decision on the Maxi Trial, as he was replaced with judge Arnaldo Valente.
On 29 June 2001, he was sentenced to six years' imprisonment for external competition in mafia association,[3] but was acquitted by the Supreme Court of Cassation on 30 October 2002.
[1][4] A provision of the law of 30 July 2007 n. 111 (approved in the Prodi II government) provided that those who had been reinstated, could not take top positions beyond 75 years instead this rule was repealed in October 2008.