Judge Carroll entered active duty in the U.S. Navy in 1943 and served during World War II.  He attended the Navy V-12 Program at Arizona State Teachers College from 1943 - 1944; the University of California, Los Angeles, from 1944 - 1945; Harvard University from 1945 - 1946; and received his B.S. from the University of Arizona in 1948 and his LL.B. from the University of Arizona in 1951.   

After graduating from law school, Judge Carroll served as a law clerk for the Arizona Supreme Court from 1951 - 1952.  He was an associate and then partner at Evans, Hull, Kitchel and Jenckes in Phoenix from 1952 - 1980.  He was nominated for appointment to the District Court on May 30, 1980, by President Jimmy Carter and took his seat on June 30, 1980.  He assumed senior status in 1994.  Judge Carroll was appointed by Chief Justice Rehnquist to serve on both the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and the Alien Terrorist Removal Court.