how significant was discretion with respect to the defense attorney

Discretion within any profession whether it is Law Enforcement, Prosecutors, Correctional Officers and or Judges can affect the moral principles and ethics of any person when having to make a decision. The responsibility of a Defense attorney is highly vital to any case or any client.

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Why do prosecutors use prosecutorial discretion?

Discretion within any profession whether it is Law Enforcement, Prosecutors, Correctional Officers and or Judges can affect the moral principles and ethics of any person when having to make a decision. The responsibility of a Defense attorney is highly vital to any case or any client.

What do defendants believe a defense attorney should do?

2. How significant was discretion with respect to the defense attorney? The discretion of the case was significant in the regard of the defense, which countered some contradicted evidences. The evidences from the trial and the hearing preliminaries have revealed that the children were coached. The testimony showed lack of credibility on the ...

How important is the quality of representation to a criminal defendant?

Oct 12, 2015 · The First Defense Attorney: Prosecutors and the Power of Discretion. Oct 12, 2015 | FIU Law Review, Student News. by Rachel Gonzalez. Oftentimes, society perceives prosecutors as stoic Inquisitors, fervently accusing defendants and fiercely seeking convictions. The reality of the prosecutor’s role is far from this nefarious caricature.

How do attorneys represent indigent defendants in court?

Jan 17, 2017 · However, the consequences of the prosecution using their discretion have a significant impact on the defense attorney. The fact that evidence can be manipulated, court dates can be changed, and the prosecutor can do whatever they want with the charges puts the defense attorney at a severe disadvantage.

How does a defense attorney use discretion?

Discretion means making a choice or judgment. When a prosecutor has discretion in your criminal case, they can choose how to prosecute a case or not at all. This room for decision-making is an opening for a criminal defense attorney to help you.May 13, 2021

Why is prosecutorial discretion so important to the criminal justice system?

There are ample benefits to prosecutorial discretion. This power allows the prosecutor to mitigate the time and expense of a trial through expedient decision-making and plea bargaining. In the case of a plea bargain, the accused offender spends less time sitting in jail awaiting the necessary preparations for trial.

Who has the most discretion in the criminal justice system?

prosecutorAs an elected or appointed official, the prosecutor is the most powerful official in the criminal justice system. Prosecutors exercise unfettered discretion, deciding who to charge with a crime, what charges to file, when to drop the charges, whether or not to plea bargain, and how to allocate prosecutorial resources.

Why do prosecutors have discretion?

There is no doubt that prosecutorial discretion is a necessary and important part of our system of justice — it allocates sparse prosecutorial resources, provides the basis for plea-bargaining and allows for leniency and mercy in a criminal justice system that is frequently harsh and impersonal.

What is meant by prosecutorial discretion?

Prosecutorial Discretion (PD) is the longstanding authority of an agency charged with enforcing the law to decide where to focus its resources and whether or how to enforce, or not to enforce, the law against an individual.Dec 9, 2021

Do defense attorneys have discretion?

Lawyers in any sector of practice have substantial discretion in pursuing clients' goals. ... In contrast, once defense attorneys accept cases, they pursue each one zealously. Discretionary judgment affects only choices about which strategy most effectively serves the client's goals of acquittal or minimal punishment.

Why is discretion important in law enforcement?

The use of discretion allows the police officer the flexibility necessary to perform their job. It also allows the police officer to quickly interpret the applicable statutory law and then act upon the determination.Dec 3, 2021

What role would discretion have in the criminal justice system?

Discretion is the power of officials to act according to the dictates of their own judgment and conscience. Discretion is abused when the judicial action is arbitrary, fanciful, or unreasonable. If the plaintiff or the defendant thinks that the trial court judge has abused the discretion, the party can appeal the case.

What role does discretion play in the operation of the criminal justice system?

Discretion plays an important role in the criminal justice system as it allows for all three areas of the process to exercise their ability to make decisions regarding suspects or offenders. ... The police exercise their discretion by choosing to investigate or bring a crime to justice.

What are some of the discretion of prosecutors?

A prosecutor's power is made more potent by the breadth of discretion granted to its wielder. Prosecutorial discretion, despite the limits imposed by law, remains wide. It gives each prosecutor the option to sift through evidence, evaluate their admissibility, and assign to them evidentiary weight.Nov 25, 2019

Is discretion in the criminal justice system good or bad?

Judicial discretion is an important aspect of the sentencing process – applying the same penalty in every case would lead to unfair outcomes because the circumstances of each defendant and offence vary. ...Feb 9, 2016

What type of discretion do judges exercise select one?

what type of discretion do judges exercise? prosecuting attorneys exercise discretion when determining whether or not to bring charges against the arrestee.

Why do prosecutores use discretion?

One reason that a prosecutor may decide not to file charges against a defendant is a lack of evidence. A prosecutor has the burden to prove beyond a reasonable doubt any charges they file against a defendant, ...

Why is it important to have a prosecutorial discretion?

Probably one of the biggest advantages of allowing prosecutorial discretion is that it promotes judicial economy. There's only so much time available on a court's calendar, so a prosecutor's ability to decide when to charge a defendant as well as their ability to plea bargain with a defendant allows prosecutors to ease the burden not only on themselves but also on courts and judges.

What is the power of a prosecutor?

Prosecutorial discretion is when a prosecutor has the power to decide whether or not to charge a person for a crime, and which criminal charges to file. This is a rather broad power that also gives prosecutors the authority to enter into plea bargains with a defendant, which can result in the defendant pleading guilty to a lesser charge ...

Why do prosecutor's decisions have to be based on race?

Because of the inherent subjectivity of a prosecutor's discretion, their personal beliefs and biases - whether conscious or unconscious - can creep into their decisions. This can lead to prosecutors filing charges based on a defendant's race or social status.

What happens if you are unfairly targeted by the government?

If you're facing charges but believe you've been unfairly targeted by the government, you may be able to make the case for selective prosecution or some other form of prosecutorial misconduct. Whether this defense is available to you or not, it's always important to have an experienced legal professional on your side.

Why do prosecutor's have discretion?

In exercising this duty, prosecuting attorneys have vast discretion in deciding what and who to charge, and vast discretion in carrying out this decision. There are four major reasons why a prosecuting attorneys may choose to exercise their prosecutorial discretion: (1) There is not enough evidence, or the evidence is not strong enough ...

What is a prosecuting attorney?

Prosecuting attorneys are attorneys who represent the State (some scholars argue that prosecutors represent the victim) in a criminal case. But to what extent is this power granted, and under what authority? In our system of jurisprudence, prosecuting attorneys have, what attorneys refer to as, prosecutorial discretion.

Can a prosecuting attorney go unchecked?

As stated above, this power, most of the time, can go unchecked. It is because of this and other reasons, prosecuting attorneys are placed in one of, if not the most powerful positions within our criminal justice system. Although a power unchecked by official authorities, an experienced criminal defense attorney, ...