In the United States, a district attorney ( DA ), state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a local government area, typically a county or a group of counties. The exact name and scope of the office varies by state.
A district attorney is a lawyer that legally represents the state during the prosecution of criminal offenders within a specific area or jurisdiction. In many instances, district attorneys lead a team of associates in coordinating duties essential for preparing and presenting cases in …
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What we do The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office (DAO) is the largest prosecutor’s office in Pennsylvania, serving more than 1.5 million residents of the City and County of Philadelphia. An independently elected office, the DAO’s mission is to protect the community and provide a voice for victims of crime.
A district attorney has the power to prosecute people charged with crimes, ranging from homicide to petty theft. A district attorney (DA) is also known as a state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, county attorney, city attorney, circuit attorney, or commonwealth's attorney, depending on the defined geographic area.
With the exception of the AG and Solicitor General for England and Wales, no prosecutors are political officials in England and Wales and no prosecutor in England and Wales is a law enforcement official by virtue of their job.
In the province of Ontario, there is only one crown attorney appointed by the Attorney General per judicial district....Crown attorney.Prosecutions in Canada are conducted in the name of the CrownOccupationSynonymsCrown counselOccupation typeProfession4 more rows
Summer StephanSan Diego County District AttorneyOffice overviewJurisdictionGovernment of San Diego CountyHeadquartersHall of Justice 330 W Broadway San Diego, California, 92101Office executiveSummer Stephan, District AttorneyWebsiteDistrict Attorney's Office website2 more rows
A district attorney is a public official who is appointed or elected to represent the state in criminal judicial proceedings in a particular judicial district or county; an appointed or elected officer who prosecutes cases in a particular judicial district.
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.
Governments employ lawyers to prosecute crime. In Alberta, these lawyers are Crown prosecutors. The Government of Alberta employs most of the Crown prosecutors in the province, and the federal government employs the rest.
ProsecutorsProsecutors are government lawyers who prosecute criminal cases. To prosecute means to lay a charge in a criminal matter and to prepare and conduct legal proceedings against a person charged with a crime.
barristers and solicitorsAll Canadian lawyers can call themselves both “barristers and solicitors”, although many define their practices as either one or the other. A barrister is a litigator, i.e. a courtroom lawyer. Traditionally, the Bar was the place in a courtroom where counsel stood to address the court.
The current district attorney (DA) is George Gascón....Los Angeles County District Attorney.District Attorney of Los Angeles CountyIncumbent George Gascón since December 7, 2020SeatClara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center 210 West Temple Street Los Angeles, California, United StatesAppointerPopular voteTerm lengthFour years6 more rows
39 deputy district attorneysThe division is led by Chief Tracy Prior and Assistant Chief Kurt Mechals and includes 39 deputy district attorneys, 14 investigators, 10 paralegals, and 16 other staff members who are stationed downtown as well as in each Branch office in the County.
A lawyer must provide a vigorous defence regardless of the crime their client is accused of or the evidence against them. The criminal justice system is built on the concept of a person being presumed innocent until their guilt is proved “beyond a reasonable doubt”.
In the United States, a district attorney ( DA ), state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a local government area, typically a county. The exact name and scope of the office varies by state.
The geographical jurisdiction of a district attorney may be delineated by the boundaries of a county, judicial circuit, or judicial district. Their duties generally include charging crimes through informations and/or grand jury indictments.
This term for a prosecutor originates with the traditional use of the term "district" for multi-county prosecutorial jurisdictions in several U.S. states. For example, New York appointed prosecutors to multi-county districts prior to 1813.
For example, in Arizona, Missouri, Montana, and Minnesota a county attorney represents the county and state within their county, prosecutes all felonies occurring within the county, and prosecutes misdemeanors occurring within unincorporated areas of the county.
State's attorney or state attorney is used in Connecticut, Florida (state attorney), Illinois, Maryland, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Vermont. In Maryland, the roles of Assistant and Deputy are reversed from those used in "District Attorney" jurisdictions, with Deputy State's Attorney being the primary subordinate to the elected State's Attorney and Assistant State's Attorneys (ASA) being the line-level prosecutors of the office.
In carrying out their duties, prosecutors have the authority to investigate persons, grant immunity to witnesses and accused criminals, and plea bargain with defendants. A district attorney leads a staff of prosecutors, who are most commonly known as deputy district attorneys (DDAs).
In the United States, a district attorney ( DA ), state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a local government area, typically a county. The exact name and scope of the office varies by state.
District attorneys, sometimes called county attorneys, state attorneys, or prosecutors, are responsible for representing the government against criminal offenders in court. In many places, a district attorney must be elected into the position. At the federal level, a district attorney is called a U.S. Attorney.
Required licensure for a district attorney involves the successful completion of one or more bar exams and admission into his or her state's bar association. The lawyer can then provide services within the state where he or she is approved. Circumstances that may prevent a student from admittance into a bar association are academic concerns, substance abuse, and legal offenses. A lawyer is also typically obligated to fulfill continuing education requirements to maintain active licensure and remain current in his or her area of expertise.
A lawyer can work in a variety of settings and specialize in many different areas. For example, a lawyer can specialize in family law and concentrate their practice in adoption, child support, and divorce. Some specialize in public-interest law, fighting with, or for, non-profit organizations and disadvantaged people. Other lawyers may choose environmental law, joining forces with government programs, advocacy groups, and waste-management facilities to defend nature and uphold laws designed to protect the planet.
In the event that the state loses its case, the prosecutor can appeal the case to the next highest state court. Many states employ attorneys specifically for appeals, known as appellate attorneys. Appeals prosecutors review the evidence and records from the trial and form an oral argument before the appellate court. Appellate courts do not permit the introduction of new evidence and only allow each side approximately 15 minutes to argue its position.
It is the prosecutor's job to make certain the evidence available and admissible in the case is sufficient to meet this burden. The prosecutor generally relies on the police to produce sufficient evidence of the crime, but it is the prosecutor's ultimate responsibility to investigate illegal activity.
Prosecutors are given wide discretion over whether to prosecute an offender. Even if the evidence seems solid in the grand jury proceedings, there is always the possibility that the evidence will not be enough to move forward; witnesses disappear; or evidence reveals that another perpetrator was actually responsible. Criminal charges stemming from a police investigation, as opposed to a grand jury, often present a prosecutor with the difficult choice of accepting the charges or declining to prosecute. Citizen complaints alleging criminal activity are often declined due to a lack of evidence.
Conduct Trials. If a criminal case goes to trial, the prosecutor must first work with the defense attorney to select a jury to hear the case. The prosecutor must investigate the background of jurors for potential bias and may excuse any candidate who likely cannot render an impartial verdict.
Each state government maintains a department of justice responsible for the prosecution of crimes. Counties, cities and towns also employ attorneys to prosecute crimes against state or local ordinances. These departments are staffed by attorneys who present the government's evidence to a judge or jury for a final determination of guilt. Known as a county or city attorney, district attorney, commonwealth attorney, prosecutor, state's attorney or deputy attorney general, these legal professionals are granted wide discretion with regard to deciding whether to prosecute, what charges to file and whether to permit a plea agreement.
Grand jury proceedings are closed to the public and are not subject to the rules of evidence. As such, hearsay evidence and testimony otherwise inadmissible in a trial may be introduced to the grand jury. In most jurisdictions, grand juries are reserved for the indictment of felony crimes only.
What we do. The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office (DAO) is the largest prosecutor’s office in Pennsylvania, serving more than 1.5 million residents of the City and County of Philadelphia. An independently elected office, the DAO’s mission is to protect the community and provide a voice for victims of crime.
The DAO is organized into seven divisions:
The primary duty of the District Attorney is to seek justice. In the course of its work, the Criminal District Attorney's Office works closely with victims of crime, law enforcement agencies, and the local community.
The District Attorney seeks to require defendants who are found guilty of a crime to take responsibility for their actions and for any harm they have caused but also works to lessen recidivism, prevent crime, and make Bexar County a safer and better place to live, work and raise children.
The Criminal District Attorney's Office analyzes all felony and most misdemeanor charges filed by law enforcement agencies in Bexar County reviews these charges to decide if enough evidence exists for further prosecution, and determines how best to proceed in the interests of justice.
The Administrative Office of the District Attorneys' (AODA) is a state agency created to support and promote the work of all of New Mexico’s District Attorneys, including but not limited to support, training, ...
The Administrative Office of the District Attorneys (AODA) administers the New Mexico District Attorney Personnel and Compensation Plan, prepares and distributes uniform forms and procedures manuals, and develops uniform systems for use by District Attorneys’ Offices with respect to administrative, personnel, and budgetary matters.
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a local government area, typically a countyor a group of counties. The exact name and scope of the office varies by state. Alternative titles for the office include coun…
This term for a prosecutor originates with the traditional use of the term "district" for multi-county prosecutorial jurisdictions in several U.S. states. For example, New York appointed prosecutors to multi-county districts prior to 1813. Even after those states broke up such districts and started appointing or electing prosecutors for individual counties, they continued to use the title "district attorney" for the most senior prosecutor in a county rather than switch to "county attorney".
The principal duties of the district attorney are usually mandated by law and include representing the State in all criminal trials for crimes which occurred in the district attorney's geographical jurisdiction. The geographical jurisdiction of a district attorney may be delineated by the boundaries of a county, judicial circuit, or judicial district.
Their duties generally include charging crimes through informationsand/or grand jury indictment…
The district attorney usually divides their services into several departments that handle different areas of criminal law. Each department is staffed by several duly appointed and sworn ASAs. The departments of a large district attorney's office may include but are not limited to: felony, misdemeanor, domestic violence, traffic, juvenile, charging (or case filing), drug prosecution, forfeitures, civil affairs such as eminent domain, child advocacy, child support, victim assistance…
The name of the role of local prosecutor may vary by state or jurisdiction based on whether they serve a county or a multi-county district, the responsibility to represent the state or county in addition to prosecution, or local historical customs.
District attorney and assistant district attorney are the most common titles for state prosecutors, and are used by jurisdictions within the United States including California, Delaware, Georgia, Mas…
The assistant district attorney (assistant DA, ADA) (or state prosecutor or assistant state's attorney) is a law enforcement official who represents the state government on behalf of the district attorney in investigating and prosecuting individuals alleged to have committed a crime. In carrying out their duties to enforce state and local laws, ADA have the authority to investigate persons, is…
Depending on state law, appeals are moved to appellate courts (also called appeals courts, courts of appeals, superior courts, or supreme courts in some states). During the appeals process district attorneys, in many cases, hands all relative prosecutorial materials to a state appellate prosecutor who in turn will represent the state in appellate courts with the advice and consent of the district attorney.
Some district attorneys maintain their own law enforcement arm whose members are sworn peace officers. Depending on the jurisdiction, they are referred to as district attorney investigators or county detectives.