A district attorney's decision whether to seek the death penalty is the most critical decision in the criminal justice system,2 because, if imposed, the death penalty results in the state sanctioned execu- tion of an individual, an "irremediable" decision. Despite the grave implications of this decision, the United States Supreme
Jun 25, 2020 · The 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office told CBS4 they have received more than 10,000 phone calls about the case, and more than 2,000 emails in just a matter of days. Elijah McClain (credit ...
Jan 31, 2018 · District attorney 101: the power they wield. January 31, 2018. This blog was written by Rahsaan Hall, ACLU of Massachusetts' Racial Justice director and director of the What a Difference a DA Makes campaign. It was originally published on the campaign's website. District Attorneys are among the most powerful people in the criminal legal system ...
NOTE: District Attorney Investigators ~ Sometimes when the district attorney wants further investigation, he or she will choose to turn the case over to a district attorney investigator, rather than sending the case back to police. Often this decision does not appear on the public record because it is an internal hand off of the case.
Required autopsies An autopsy may be required by law in deaths that may have medical and legal issues. They include deaths that: Are unexpected. This may include the sudden death of a healthy child or adult.
You asked if autopsy results are available for public inspection in Massachusetts, and if so, to whom a written request for such information should be forwarded. By law, autopsy results are not available for public inspection in Massachusetts. They are available only to those legally entitled to receive them (Mass.Apr 30, 2004
(2) The State Medical Examiner shall perform autopsies, if in the judgment of the State Medical Examiner such autopsy is necessary in any death requiring investigation, when requested by a medical examiner or district attorney.
Specialized Training for CoronersBe at least 18 years old.Possess a high school diploma or GED.Be currently employed as a medical examiner or coroner and have the major job responsibility of conducting death scene in investigations.Have at least 640 hours of death investigation experience.
The classifications are natural, accident, suicide, homicide, undetermined, and pending. Only medical examiner's and coroners may use all of the manners of death.
approximately 6 weeksAn autopsy is much more than a physical examination of a deceased person, though, and as such, it takes approximately 6 weeks to get the final autopsy report. During this time important samples that were taken during the examination are processed by a laboratory to provide definitive results.
Oregon statute allows a physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner licensed under the laws of Oregon or under the laws of Washington, Idaho, or California who has treated a decedent within the 12 months preceding death to complete the medical certification of death.
Medical examiners and coroners commonly determine cause and manner of death without an autopsy examination. Some death certificates generated in this way may not state the correct cause and manner of death.
between $3,000 and $5,000A private autopsy by an outside expert can cost between $3,000 and $5,000. In some cases, there may be an additional charge for the transportation of the body to and from the autopsy facility.
The first sentence of ORS 146.035(5) was enacted in 1973, the same year in which the Public Records Law was enacted. We have four times since concluded that the first sentence of ORS 146.035(5) restricts public access to autopsy reports only to those persons described in the statute.Oct 8, 2003
A coroner is a judicial officer responsible for investigating deaths in certain situations. Coroners are usually lawyers or doctors with a minimum of 5 years' experience. In most cases, a doctor or the police refer a death to the coroner.
pathologistWho does the autopsy? Autopsies ordered by the state can be done by a county coroner, who is not necessarily a doctor. A medical examiner who does an autopsy is a doctor, usually a pathologist.
District Attorneys are among the most powerful people in the criminal legal system in Massachusetts, and play a major role in determining the way criminal cases are initiated and ultimately resolved. They wield a substantial amount of power throughout the judicial process – from charging decisions to sentencing recommendations.
Civil asset forfeiture is a way for prosecutors to seize property and money that law enforcement officers believe is connected to criminal activity. Here in Massachusetts, our standard for taking that money is very low, and the burden is on the owner of the property to prove it is not connected to criminal activity.
District attorneys have the power to choose which charges are filed against an individual accused of a crime. When the police arrest someone, the district attorney’s office has the power to prosecute those cases, divert the accused to a program or drug treatment, or dismiss the case altogether.
When a defendant accepts the terms of the sentence proposed by the DA, they enter a guilty plea which the judge will typically accept. The DA has immense power in influencing an individual’s decision to enter into a plea deal or to take their case to trial.
DAs can overcharge in order to get plea deals; they can decide if a defendant is offered diversion or not; they can set priorities on what kinds of charges they want to bring; and they can decide whether or not to prosecute certain crimes at all, like declining to prosecute low-level offenses.
The difference between a guilty and not guilty verdict comes down to the evidence presented by the district attorney. A number of Supreme Court decisions have reaffirmed the district attorney’s obligation to turn over exculpatory evidence to the defense during discovery.
The medical examiner is a state employee and usually works on the side of law enforcement. If a medical examiner were to report a cause of death that did not support evidence of a crime, that information would have to be made available to any potential defendant.
In the alternative scenario, when evidence of a crime is supported by the M.E. report, it would be up to the defendant to produce reasonable doubt by cross-examination or producing expert testimony that contradicts the M.E.'s conclusion. This might or might not include hiring an independent third party forensic pathologist as an expert witness. Dr.
All that said, the "cause of death" reported by the Coroner is just a medical opinion and is subject to error and disagreement like any other opinion. It's just that it's unlikely that disagreement would come from the side of law enforcement in most cases.
A “payable on death” or “transfer on death” arrangement with the financial institution may be another option. “A TOD/POD provision on all financial accounts allows control to continue after death,” Villines says. “A will and agreement on your computer that ‘just needs to be tweaked a bit’ is equal to not having a will.
Barbara Fishleder, executive director of the Oregon Attorney Assistance Program, says that “giving the transfer agent, often referred to as the assisting attorney, written permission to contact your clients for instructions on transferring their files and authorization to notify people of your office closure are some of the things you will want to cover.”
Conflicts checks before undertaking the responsibility of winding down another attorney’s office are in order just as if receiving a client referral. Indeed, avoiding conflicts is key when the incentive to being an assisting lawyer is acquiring the affected attorney’s clients.
Hammond of the Washington State Bar says, “If you do nothing else, have another attorney who can sign on your account in the event of death or incapacitation.”