FJP Letter 21St Century Prosecution Task Force
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For Immediate Release News Release 2017-6 January 20, 2017
DEPARTMENT OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL DAVID Y. IGE GOVERNOR DOUGLAS S. CHIN ATTORNEY GENERAL For Immediate Release News Release 2017-6 January 20, 2017 ATTORNEY GENERAL DOUG CHIN VOICES OPPOSITION TO TWO PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATIONS HONOLULU – Attorney General Doug Chin has joined five other state Attorneys General opposing the nomination of Senator Jeff Sessions for United States Attorney General and has joined eight other state Attorneys General opposing the nomination of Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to become Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The letter opposing Senator Sessions’ nomination to lead the United States Department of Justice notes, “The Justice Department seal reads ‘Qui Pro Domina Justitia Sequitur’: ‘Who prosecutes on behalf of justice.’ As state attorneys general—the chief law officers of our respective states—we regularly work with the U.S. Department of Justice. Senator Sessions has stood for policies antithetical to this core mission of the Justice Department. For these reasons, we believe him to be unqualified for the role of United States Attorney General. We join the thousands of individuals and organizations that have voiced their opposition to Senator Sessions’ appointment and respectfully urge you to reject his nomination.” The letter cites Senator Sessions’ refusal to protect racial minorities and vulnerable populations and his rejection of bipartisan criminal justice reforms. The letter opposing Attorney General Pruitt’s nomination to head the EPA says in part, “As the Attorney General of Oklahoma, Mr. Pruitt made it a priority to attack the rules— promulgated by EPA to implement Congressional mandates—that EPA is charged with enforcing. -
University of Pennsylvania Law Review
University of Pennsylvania Law Review FOUNDED 1852 ________________ Formerly American Law Register ________________________ VOL. 157 APRIL 2009 NO.4 ARTICLE PROSECUTORIAL REGULATION VERSUS PROSECUTORIAL ACCOUNTABILITY † STEPHANOS BIBAS No government official has as much unreviewable power or discretion as the prosecutor. Few regulations bind or even guide prosecutorial discretion, and fewer still work well. Most commentators favor more external regulation by legis- latures, judges, or bar authorities. Neither across-the-board legislation nor ex post review of individual cases has proven to be effective, however. Drawing on man- agement literature, this Article reframes the issue as a principal-agent problem and suggests corporate strategies for better serving the relevant stakeholders. Fear of voters could better check prosecutors, as could victim participation in individ- † Professor, University of Pennsylvania Law School. B.A., Columbia; B.A., M.A., Oxford; J.D., Yale. E-mail: stephanos *dot* bibas *at* gmail *dot* com. Thanks to Rachel Barkow, Richard Bierschbach, Paul Butler, Adam Cox, Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar, Margareth Etienne, Jeffrey Fagan, Jacob Gersen, Bernard Harcourt, Todd Henderson, Douglas Lichtman, Erik Luna, Richard McAdams, Tracey Meares, John Pfaff, Randal Picker, Eric Posner, Margaret Raymond, Jacqueline Ross, Carol Steiker, Lior Strahilevitz, Ronald Wright, and participants in the University of Chicago Crimi- nal Justice Roundtable for their thoughts and comments and to Jordan Esbrook and Brian Raimondo for research assistance. (959) 960 University of Pennsylvania Law Review [Vol. 157: 959 ual cases. Scholars have largely neglected the most promising avenue of reform, namely changing the internal structure and management of prosecutors’ offices. Leaders could do more to develop office cultures, norms, and ideals that value more than maximizing conviction statistics. -
An Overview of the Office of District Attorney
AN OVERVIEW OF THE OFFICE OF DISTRICT ATTORNEY I. GENERAL INFORMATION FOR DISTRICT ATTORNEYS A. Authority 1. Louisiana Constitution Art. 5 Section 26 (B) Powers. Except as otherwise provided by this constitution, a district attor- ney, or his designated assistant, shall have charge of every criminal prosecu- tion by the state in his district, be the representation of the state before the grand jury in his district, and be the legal advisor of the grand jury. He shall perform other duties provided by law. 2. See also Code of Criminal Procedure Articles 61-66. The district attorney determines whom, when, and how to charge a State criminal law violation. Law enforcement agencies report to the district attor- ney on arrests made. He then evaluates (screening) each case based on the weight and admissibility of evidence in consideration of his greater burden of proof of guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt.” His obligation is to seek justice rather than merely to convict. 3. Other statutory authority. There are numerous statutes authorizing the district attorney to enforce certain laws. Examples are enforcement of election code matters and open meeting requirements. B. DUTIES AND FUNCTIONS 1. Criminal Duties a. Receive, data entry (case management system) and review(screen) all post arrest criminal files submitted for prosecution by local, parish, state and federal law enforcement agencies to determine the nature of the charges(probable cause for arrest) and weight of evidence for prosecution and to take one or more of the following actions: (1) If accepting or amending submitted charges, prepare bills of information. (2) If accepting charges but defendant qualifies for diversion, refer to diversion program (PTI). -
2020 Adopting a Robust Immigration Agenda: the Call for The
DRAFT: NOT FOR CIRCULATION 1/29/21 2:00 PM _______ LAW REVIEW VOLUME ___ ____ 2020 NUMBER _____ Adopting a Robust Immigration Agenda: The Call for the Progressive Prosecutor to End the Deportation Pipeline Talia Peleg Abstract “Progressive prosecutors” seek to redefine the role of the prosecutor and question the purpose of the criminal legal system, ushering in the need to reexamine the scope and substance of their duties toward all, but particularly immigrant defendants, seeing as they suffer outsized punishment for most criminal offenses. Ten years ago, Padilla v. Kentucky broke ground in finally recognizing that defense counsel is constitutionally obligated to advise immigrants of the clear risks of deportation associated with a plea. Nevertheless, immigrants ensnared in the criminal legal system have since faced deportation at ever-increasing rates. Given the entwinement of immigration and criminal law, organizers and scholars have recognized that local prosecutors serve as gatekeepers to the federal criminal removal system. Yet, prosecutors around the country wildly differ in their treatment of immigrant defendants, at times ignoring or misusing this gatekeeping role. In the last decade, new prosecutorial goals—ensuring fairness and equity, promoting community integrity, tackling disproportionate treatment of Black and Brown communities in policing and incarceration, addressing root causes of crime—have gained increasing popularity, by some. Decriminalization and decarceration have been tools utilized to meet these goals. The specific goals strived for by so-called “progressive prosecutors” require an examination of their treatment of migrants and application of an immigrant’s rights lens to their current practices. Their policies toward immigrant defendants to date have been tepid and at times, harmful. -
Jeffrey Brown
Jeffrey A. Brown Partner New York | Three Bryant Park, 1095 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY, United States of America 10036-6797 T +1 212 698 3511 | F +1 212 698 3599 [email protected] Services Litigation > White Collar, Compliance and Investigations > Anti-Corruption Compliance and Investigations > Asset Management Litigation/Enforcement > Automotive and Transportation > Banking and Financial Institutions > Jeffrey A. Brown focuses his practice on white collar defense, securities litigation, SEC and CFTC enforcement actions, and related commercial litigation. His experience includes conducting internal investigations across multiple industries and across international boundaries, representing companies and individuals in connection with investigations by the Department of Justice, the Securities Exchange Commission, and state and local prosecutors. Mr. Brown’s practice includes a number of matters representing individuals investigated for “spoofing” and other market manipulation in markets for various commodities. Mr. Brown previously worked for approximately 9 years at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, where he served as Co-Chief of the General Crimes Unit and before that as Acting Deputy Chief of the Narcotics Unit. As an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Mr. Brown investigated and prosecuted crimes in the Terrorism, International Narcotics Trafficking, Narcotics, Violent Crimes and General Crimes Units. Many of Mr. Brown’s representations at Dechert involve investigations brought by his former Office. The recipient of the 2011 Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award, during his time at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he prosecuted several high-profile cases, including United States v. Faisal Shahzad, the Times Square bomber, and United States v. -
10 Things the Ethical Lawyer Can Learn from the OJ Trial Richard Jolley and Brian Augenthaler
4/12/2017 10 Things the Ethical Lawyer Can Learn From the OJ Trial Richard Jolley and Brian Augenthaler OJ murdered Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman • Murders: June 12, 1994 • Brentwood, L.A. • Arrested: June 17, 1994 • Arraignment: June 20, 1994 • Verdict: October 3, 1995 1 4/12/2017 5 “killer” pieces of physical evidence • Ron Goldman and Nicole Simpson’s blood in OJ’s Bronco • OJ’s blood at the Bundy crime scene • Bloody glove at Bundy and the bloody glove at OJ’s house • Bloody footprints at scene matching bloody footprint in OJ’s Bronco • Trace evidence – hair and fiber evidence linking OJ to crime scene and Goldman Goldman’s blood in the Bronco • The Bronco was locked and was not accessed until the tow yard • LAPD detectives asked Kato if he had spare keys the morning after the murders • Mark Furhman was never in the Bronco (mistake spare tire testimony) 2 4/12/2017 OJ’s blood at Bundy • OJ’s blood drops next to bloody Bruno Magli size-12 shoe print (1 in 170 million) • OJ’s blood on back gate (1 in 58 billion!) • Phil Vanatter planted it on the gate? Bloody gloves • Aris XL cashmere-lined gloves (less than 200 pair sold exclusively by Bloomingdales) (unavailable west of Chicago) • Receipt for identical gloves purchased by Nicole Brown Simpson in December 1990 (and photos of OJ wearing those gloves) • Left glove found at Bundy crime scene and right glove found by Mark Fuhrman • Blood and hair of victims and Simpson found on gloves • How did Mark Fuhrman get lucky and plant a glove that OJ wore? How did Fuhrman get OJ’s blood unless -
Joint Statement by Law Enforcement Leaders on Protecting Voters
Joint Statement by Law Enforcement Leaders on Protecting Voters As law enforcement leaders, elected prosecutors, and chief legal officers of our jurisdictions, we know that the right to vote is fundamental to our democracy and our identity as Americans, regardless of political affiliation. It is a constitutional right and, ultimately, a public trust and safety issue. Public trust in democracy, the rule of law, and the integrity of our government is integral to public safety. When one system is attacked and fails, it compromises the ability of all systems to function, including our criminal justice system. And when communities do not trust us, we cannot effectively keep them safe. Efforts to interfere with the United States Postal Service imperil the democratic process and erode confidence in the integrity of all government systems. Within the context of a pandemic, we should already be deeply concerned that crowds at polling places will endanger our residents. And now, recent threats and intimidation tactics, including deploying law enforcement to police the polls, raises the prospect of voter intimidation, damaging bonds of trust between law enforcement and communities they serve. This is playing out at a time when the number of Americans expressing confidence in law enforcement has fallen to an all-time low. That is why, as leaders charged with protecting public safety, we call for free and fair elections and condemn efforts to interfere with the Postal Service and undermine the voting process. It is more important than ever that we protect the integrity of our democracy, and, in the era of COVID-19, the ability to vote by mail is essential to protecting our cherished democratic process. -
Title Here – Option 1
Post Election Briefing - State Attorneys General Stephen Cobb: Partner, Former Deputy Attorney General of Virginia Jim Schultz: Partner, Former Senior Associate White House Counsel, Former General Counsel to Pennsylvania Governor Bill Shepherd: Partner, Florida’s Former Statewide Prosecutor December 8, 2020 Copyright © 2020 Holland & Knight LLP. All Rights Reserved Thank you for joining today’s program • All participants are on mute • Please ask questions via Q&A box • Today’s program is being recorded and will be posted on our website • For technical assistance please reach out to the host via the chat box 2 Today’s Presenters Stephen Cobb Jim Schultz Bill Shepherd Partner Partner Partner Former Deputy Former Senior Associate Florida’s Former Attorney General White House Counsel, Statewide Prosecutor of Virginia Former General Counsel to Pennsylvania Governor 3 The Growing Role of State Attorneys General Looking Back on 2020 The Election Results 2021 – What to Expect 4 Priorities of State Attorneys General During 2020 • Consumer Protection • False Claims Act • Antitrust • Environmental Enforcement Actions • COVID-19 • Data Breach/Data Privacy 5 State Attorney General Race Results . Indiana . Pennsylvania . Todd Rokita (R) defeated Jonathan Weinzapfel (D) . Josh Shapiro* (D) defeated Heather Heidelbaugh (R) . Missouri . Utah . Eric Schmitt* (R) defeated Richard Finneran (D) . Sean D. Reyes* (R) defeated Greg Skordas (D) . Montana . Vermont . Austin Knudsen (R) defeated Ralph Graybill (D) vs. T.J. Donovan* (D) defeated H Brooke Paige (R) . North Carolina . Washington . Josh Stein* (D) defeated Jim O’Neill (R) . Bob Ferguson* (D) defeated Matt Larkin (R) . Oregon . West Virginia . Ellen Rosenblum* (D) defeated Michael Cross (R) . Patrick Morrisey* (R) defeated Sam Brown Petsonk (D) Aside from the 10 races detailed above, Maine’s next state legislature and the governors of New Hampshire, Puerto Rico, and American Samoa are due to appoint new AGs. -
Hiring Practices of California District
HIRING PRACTICES OF CALIFORNIA DISTRICT ATTORNEY OFFICES 2017-2018 County Map of California 2 3 California District Attorney Office Hiring Practices INTRODUCTION This directory was compiled by the UC Davis School of Law in the Spring of 2017. It contains information about student and attorney positions at district attorney offices throughout California. This information is based on entries in an earlier directory, previous job listings, web site information, and follow-up telephone calls. Some counties conduct on campus interviews for third year students or both second and third year students at several law schools in the fall. The UC Davis School of Law will advertise these opportunities. Please note that you should always verify the names of any hiring attorney or District Attorney, and the office address, before corresponding with these offices. Before any interview, you should research each particular office and the background of the District Attorney. Also, hiring practices can change at any time due to changes in budgets and turnover. If you are particularly interested in a county, it is recommended that you contact the representative listed, the district attorney office, or the county’s personnel office directly to determine hiring needs. The vast majority of the offices are very helpful and willing to provide necessary information to those who are interested. Another great resource for finding employment opportunities in prosecution is the California District Attorneys’ Association website. The association’s web address is www.cdaa.org. Good luck! 4 Table of Contents Alameda ................................................. 4 Placer ..................................................... 25 Alpine ..................................................... 5 Plumas .................................................... 25 Amador .................................................. 5 Riverside ...................................................26 Butte ....................................................... 5 Sacramento ............................................ -
Dysfunction in the Electoral Process
The New York City Board of Elections (BOE) is charged with administering elections in New York City: it maintains the voter rolls, oversees candidate petitioning, and runs Election Day operations. Recent elections and investigations by independent bodies indicate that the BOE fails to carry out these functions competently and impartially, resulting in dysfunction in our democratic process. This dysfunction manifests itself through disenfranchisement - either directly through voter purges and ballot disqualifications or indirectly through engendering a lack of faith in our election process. This lack of faith in the process has led New York to be among the worst states in terms of voter turnout.1 The root cause of this dysfunction is the BOE’s inherently political nature. Ultimately, this politicization must be addressed through amendment to the New York State Constitution, but County parties have the power to make incremental reforms. In this document, New Kings Democrats will explain more about the BOE’s politicization and dysfunction, as well as potential paths for its reform. Dysfunction in the electoral process The BOE is responsible for: ● Overseeing voter registration, outreach, and processing; ● Maintaining and updating voter records ● Recruiting, training, and assigning Election Day officers to conduct elections; ● Operating poll site locations; ● Maintaining, repairing, setting up, and deploying Election Day operation equipment; and ● Assuring each voter’s right to vote at the polls or by absentee ballot.2 1 https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2018/feb/01/andrea-stewart-cousins/new-york-consistently-ranks-lo w-voter-turnout/ 2 https://vote.nyc/page/about-nyc-board-elections Over the past 20 years, audits by the New York City Comptroller’s Office, the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI), and non-governmental organizations and advocacy groups have raised questions about the BOE’s competency in carrying out these functions. -
AG Alliance 2020 Virtual Annual Meeting Final Agenda * All Times EDT
AG Alliance 2020 Virtual Annual Meeting Final Agenda * All times EDT THURSDAY 7/16: 11:30am – 2:30pm EDT (2 panels) • 11:30am – 12:30pm EDT: COVID-19 Impacts and Adaptations by Innovators and Industry, Consumer Warnings and State Government Oversight Roles (60 min) Moderator: Ellen Rosenblum, Attorney General, Oregon Attorney General’s Office o Lev Kubiak, Vice President and Deputy Chief Security Officer, Pfizer o Haley Schaffer, Senior Legal Counsel, 3M o Speaker TBD, Lowe’s Summary: Price gouging laws typically apply to prices of essential items needed in an emergency. Price gouging occurs when a seller increases the price of goods, services or commodities to a level much higher than is considered reasonable or fair. Hear how Attorneys General and industry continue working together to identify and stop this practice during the pandemic. The internet has driven a dramatic increase in the expansion of the counterfeit drug market. Learn about the low- risk/high-reward nature of this criminal industry, and how regulators are stepping up to combat it. • 1pm-2:30pm EDT: COVID-19 Price Gouging Issues (90 min) Moderator: William Tong, Attorney General, Connecticut o Clayton Friedman, Partner, Crowell & Moring LLP o Paul Singer, Senior Counsel for Public Protection, Texas AGO o Victoria Butler, Director, Consumer Protection Division, Florida AGO o Nicholas Trutanich, US Attorney, District of Nevada Summary: Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, Attorneys General have been on the watch for price gouging. As a result, several large companies have become subject to Attorney General investigations, and others have been named defendants in class action lawsuits brought by unhappy consumers. -
District Attorney
GENERAL FUND DEPARTMENTS: Administration of Justice DISTRICT ATTORNEY MISSION The Fort Bend County District Attorney’s office represents the people of the State of Texas in all felony and misdemeanor criminal cases in the District Courts, County Courts at-Law, and Justice Courts. It is the primary duty of the District Attorney and his assistants, not to convict, but to see that justice is done. Additionally, the District Attorney represents the State in asset forfeiture cases, bond forfeiture cases, juvenile matters, and protective orders as well as aiding crime victims through its victim assistance coordinator. GOALS GOAL 1 Provide effective prosecution in all courts in order to effectively move the dockets while ensuring justice. Objective 1 Recruitment of prosecutors requires that we continue our dynamic internship program, whereby students are allowed to work and learn in a courtroom environment. Objective 2 Become more competitive with Harris County for prosecutors, and pay them at least 90 percent of what Harris County does. Objective 3 Upgrade positions to keep the best prosecutors. Currently, the office trains prosecutors to become excellent lawyers, only to have them leave (and take the County’s investment with them). A salary, which is more competitive with Harris County, should be achieved. GOAL 2 To improve prosecution in services, in order to ensure justice. Objective 1 Add assistants commensurate with the creation of new courts and increased caseload. Objective 2 As soon as practical, create an additional position for another full-time Assistant District Attorney to concentrate on filing of cases in the intake division. GOAL 3 Increase services to victims of family violence, in order to enhance education and protection of the public.