CJUS 330 LU Prosecutors & Defense Attorneys Roles Discussion Responses

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discussion 1

 Prosecutors, working with the many actors of the criminal justice system, seek justice in criminal cases. There are times when prosecutors may misuse their authority. One misuse of authority is withholding or tampering with evidence. This may lead to a conviction or a dismissal of a charge. To remedy this situation, a prosecutor must turn over all evidence and always seek justice. (Neubauer & Fradella, 2019, p. 171-173)

       Defense attorneys advocate and champion their client’s cases and advise of scenarios and consequences for outcomes with their client. They must follow their state’s American Bar Association’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct. “These rules impose ethical obligations on lawyers to their clients, as well as to the courts, since all attorneys are officers of the court.” (Neubauer & Fradell, 2019, p. 217) One key responsibility of an attorney is to refrain from making any out-of-court statements that he/she should reasonably know will be disseminated to the public and may prejudice a jury. If this were to mistakenly happen, an attorney could acknowledge the error and ask for a change of venue to help ensure a fair and impartial jury selection.

       Micah 6:8 reads, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” I believe that the prosecutor’s role of seeking justice would align with the Biblical principles of righteousness and fairness. The Biblical principles of fairness and mercy could be found in the defense attorney’s role. I believe that anyone involved in the criminal justice process should understand that it is only by the grace of God that any authority is given to perform the roles and a position of humility would serve them well.

Discussion 2

After reading the lecture notes on prosecutors and defense attorneys, it is clear that both parties within the court system can bend the rules to get the desired outcome they want. Even though prosecutors and defense attorneys are fighting for the same thing, they go about it in completely different ways. On one side prosecutors are trying to get a successful conviction, in which they can bend the rules to try and force the conviction.  On the other side, defense attorneys are fighting to keep their clients innocent, but sometimes defense attorneys can bend some rules to keep their clients from being guilty. Prosecutors can exceed their authority in many ways, but one example is that they can tamper with evidence. Evidence plays an important role in the conviction of criminals, for example, if a crime happens and there are no witnesses then it is up to the evidence to speak on the victim’s behalf. Evidence does not lie; its crucial role is to convict or set free a person on trial. If prosecutors tamper with evidence in a way that benefits them, then that is a problem. This is an example of when prosecutors exceed their authority. Prosecutors often have this problem simply because they forget what they are fighting for. Prosecutors fight for justice, whether the individual committed the crime or not, they are fighting for justice. It is imperative that prosecutors fight for justice and take the time to really figure out if the person is guilty or not. If the evidence is not that strong and the prosecutor is being pushed to try and get a conviction it can cause problems including tampering with evidence. “Their job is to convict the guilty. But a closer examination shows that the goals are not as clear-cut as they first appear. Prosecutors define their main job in different ways. Some stress working closely with law enforcement agencies. Thus, they serve as police advocates in court and stress punishing the guilty. Others emphasize their role as court-based officials. Thus, they define their job as impartially administering justice and emphasize securing convictions” (Neubauer & Fradella, 2019) As for the defense, they can also bend the rules and try to secure their client’s innocence. One of the ways they do this is the same as prosecutors, tampering with evidence. “Defense attorneys are not immune to suppressing evidence or in other ways manipulating the system to in order to get their client off.” (Lecture Notes) The best remedy for both problems is to remind the prosecutors and defense attorneys what is truly important, and that is justice. It is all about justice, whether a person is found guilty, or innocent should rely upon justice. Tampering with evidence is cheating the system; in some cases, evidence is the only thing that can testify in court. Tampering with evidence is not justice, whether the person is guilty or not, it is just plain wrong. To be a good prosecutor or defense attorney one must hold a high ethical standard. Neubauer & Fradella mention the importance of ethics for prosecutors and defense attorneys alike. “Supreme Court cases that, like Brady v. Maryland (1963), require the prosecutor to hand over to the defense exculpatory evidence (evidence that tends to show the innocence of the defendant).” (Neubauer & Fradella, 2019) This statement explicitly states that prosecutors are ethically required to hand over this evidence, to not do this is unjustifiable. “The duty of candor to the tribunal, as it is known, is the most important responsibility all lawyers owe to the courts. This ethical rule prohibits lawyers from knowingly making false statements to the court, failing to disclose adverse legal precedents, obstructing access to or tampering with witnesses or evidence, making frivolous discovery requests, and offering any evidence known to be false—including perjurious or misleading testimony.” (Neubauer & Fradella, 2019) This statement explicitly states that defense attorneys are prohibited from doing these unethical acts. The role of prosecutors and defense attorneys can both be defended by Biblical principles. The reason for this is that prosecutors and defense attorneys both fight for justice, and the Bible is all about justice. “It is joy to the just to do judgment: But destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.” (King James Version, 1769/2008, Proverbs 21:15)