Job Description A district attorney is an appointed or elected public official who can represent a county, city or state. The DA is intimately involved in the prosecution of each criminal case in his jurisdiction. Their job is to rectify wrongdoings committed against the public.
Spitzer is facing off against progressive challenger Peter Hardin, who’s calling for sweeping changes to the county legal system, somewhat similar to the goals that nearby Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón has pursued.
When the police arrest someone and charge them with a crime in district court, the local 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.
The local -or state- district attorney is an elected office, like the mayor or city council. The public (voters) votes them in -or out- of office just like any other elected office. Only a handful of states have appointed local district attorneys. In New York City, district attorneys, unlike every other elected office, are not held to term limits.
District attorneys in California have tremendous power to impact the lives of millions of people, their families, and entire communities. If someone is accused of committing a crime, it is not the police but the DA who has the sole power to decide if criminal charges are filed and the severity of those charges.
U.S. Attorneys are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, and they serve terms of four years or at the President's discretion.
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.
Marilyn Mosby (née James; born January 22, 1980) is an American politician and lawyer who has been the State's Attorney for Baltimore since 2015. She is the youngest chief prosecutor of any major American city.
In practice, district attorneys, who prosecute the bulk of criminal cases in the United States, answer to no one. The state attorney general is the highest law enforcement officer in state government and often has the power to review complaints about unethical and illegal conduct on the part of district attorneys.
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.
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.
(abbreviation DA) a lawyer whose job is to represent the government in a particular area of the US. Lawyers & legal officials. amicus. articled.
Assistant District Attorneys (ADA) are the lawyers working under the supervision of the District Attorney. The Assistant district attorneys assist the District Attorney in all administrative and managerial functions of his office according to his direction.
Below is a listing of current United States Attorneys for all 94 districts....U.S. Attorneys Listing.DistrictUnited States AttorneyDistrict of ColumbiaMatthew M. Graves *Florida, MiddleRoger B. HandbergFlorida, NorthernJason R. Coody90 more rows
Elections for the office of district attorney are held every four years at the same time as elections for the Governor, with the exception of Los Angeles and San Francisco counties. Candidates for the office must fulfill the educational requirements to practice law in California before running for election.
OAKLAND, Calif. — Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón ran on a vow to shake up America's largest law enforcement jurisdiction. Sweeping progressive changes followed — and so has the California backlash.
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.
It takes approximately seven years to become a lawyer. Four years consist of undergraduate studies and the remaining three years are spent in law school. Most states require potential lawyers to be graduates of an American Bar Association (ABA) accredited school to qualify for admission to the bar.
District Attorneys. A lawyer who represents the state in local criminal cases is usually referred to as the "District Attorney," although, depending on your state, these attorneys can go by other titles such as "Prosecuting Attorney" or "County Attorney.". The Attorney General of a state typically represents the state in civil cases, ...
The Attorney General of a state typically represents the state in civil cases, but in some states the Attorney General prosecutes all criminal cases. District Attorneys play a major role in investigating and prosecuting cases which is why it's important to learn more about the District Attorneys in your state.
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.
In Ohio a county prosecutor represents the county and state within their county, prosecutes all crimes within the county, and is legal adviser to the board of county commissioners, board of elections, and all other county officers and boards.
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.
A district attorney is an elected or appointed public official of a county or designated district whose duties are governed by state law.
To, when requested to do so by the Attorney General, assist the Attorney General in the prosecution of all impeachment proceedings which it is his or her duty to institute before a court involving any official or officials in their respective judicial circuits.
Specific duties may include the following: To attend on the grand juries, advise them in relation to matters of law, and examine and swear witnesses before them. To draw up all indictments and to prosecute all indictable offenses.
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.
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.
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.
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.
When the police arrest someone and charge them with a crime in district court, the local 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 .
Here’s where the DAs come in: it is rare for a judge to order bail if the local District Attorney’s office has not made a request for bail. Despite the presumption of innocence, the court will oblige the prosecutor’s request and order people to be held unless bail is paid or other restrictions – like travel limitations –followed.
Statutory responsibilities. G.S. 7A-61 requires the district attorney to do the following: 1 prepare the trial dockets; 2 prosecute in a timely manner all criminal actions and infractions requiring prosecution in the superior and district courts of the districtattorney’s prosecutorial district; 3 advise the officers of justice in the districtattorney’s district; 4 represent the State in juvenile cases in the superior and district courts in which the juvenile is represented by an attorney; 5 provide to the Attorney General any case files, records and additional information necessary for the Attorney General to conduct appeals to the Appellate Division for cases from the districtattorney’s prosecutorial district; and 6 devote his or her full time to the duties of his office and not engage in the private practice of law.
Section 18 requires the district attorney to “advise the officers of justice in his district,” and makes the district attorney “responsible for the prosecution on behalf of the State ...
The North Carolina Court of Appeals has explained that prosecutorial discretion is necessary to weigh “such factors as the likelihood of successful prosecution, the social value of obtaining a conviction as against the time and expense to the state, and the prosecutor’s own sense of justice in the particular case.”.
As the court of appeals noted in Rogers, society benefits from a prosecutors’ weighing of case specific factors including the social value of obtaining a conviction, the time and expense to the State, and the prosecutor’s own sense of justice.
If you do not already know the name of the district attorney in your jurisdiction, you can find it online by searching for the website of the "office of the district attorney" or "district attorney's office" in your area. "District attorney" is the title of the chief prosecutor ...
The district attorney may not have the authority to address your concern, and may simply refer you to another office. If you are not sure to whom you should address your concern, consider telephoning the district attorney's office or contacting an attorney.
When addressing any authority figure, it is polite to show respect that person and the office he or she holds by using the proper title. Twenty-one states in the United States use the title of "district attorney" to refer to the chief prosecutor of a jurisdiction.
Tips. "District attorney" is not a proper noun, and does not need to be capitalized unless it is being used as a person's title. For example, "I have a question for District Attorney Johnson" versus "I have a question for the district attorney.". Thanks!