 His father, Lisle Carter Sr., was a prominent Harlem dentist, and his mother, Eunice Carter, was the first black woman district attorney in the state of New York.Carter graduated from high school at age 15, and from there spent two years at Cazenovia College.He later graduated from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, then served in the Army for two years before receiving a law degree from St. John's University in New York.