who does a district attorney answer too?

by Miss Katherine McCullough 5 min read

The District Attorney serves as legal advisor to the Grand Jury and, through its family support division, enforces parental financial obligations. The Board of Supervisors exercises budgetary control but not operational control over elected District Attorneys.

What is the role of the district attorney in a case?

Jul 05, 2012 · Avvo has 97% of all lawyers in the US. Find the best ones near you.

What is the New York County district attorney called?

Aug 11, 2011 · At the US Federal level, District Attorneys are appointed and answer to the Attorney General, or Assistant Attorney General, who …

What is the term of office for a district attorney?

Who are the real district attorneys in law and order?

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What is a district attorney?

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.

What is an assistant district attorney?

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, ...

What is a DA?

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.

What is the role of a prosecutor?

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).

What does a county attorney do?

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.

Is the salary of an ADA lower than the salary of an elected DA?

The salary of an ADA will be lower than the elected DA. The non-monetary benefits of the job induce many to work as an ADA; these include the opportunity to amass trial experience, perform a public service, and network professionally.

What is the role of a district attorney in Massachusetts?

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.

What is civil forfeiture?

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.

Can a deputy district attorney file charges?

Ethically, a deputy district attorney is only allowed to file charges that they believe they can prove beyond a reasonable doubt. If they feel they cannot meet this burden, they are ethically prohibited from filing said charges. However, many times the district attorney has only one side of the story to base this on. It is important to get a good criminal defense attorney at the time the District Attorney is reviewing...

Does a criminal case have to be strong?

No it doesn't have to be a strong case. The evidence just has to be sufficient to support a criminal charge. This may turn out to be wrong later and the case could be dropped or dismissed

Can a DA file a case with weak evidence?

Technically the DA can file a case even with weak evidence. It's important to keep in mind that even seemingly strong cases can have weaknesses. The DA could think they have a strong case, but a good criminal defense attorney might find something that destroys the government's case...

What is the Manhattan District Attorney?

The New York County District Attorney, also known as the Manhattan District Attorney, is the elected district attorney for New York County (Manhattan), New York. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of New York state laws ( federal law violations in Manhattan are prosecuted by the U.S.

When did the Bronx become a separate county?

On January 1, 1914 , the Bronx became a separate county with its own district attorney. Until 1822, the district attorney was appointed by the Council of Appointment, and held the office "during the Council's pleasure", meaning that there was no defined term of office.

Who controls the sheriff's budget?

The voters. In my county the sheriff's budget is controlled by the county commissioners. Courts can order the sheriff to do certain things, although the sheriff can delegate most things. If the sheriff commits a crime, or a tort, he can be sued or prosecuted like anyone else.

Can a sheriff be fired?

A sheriff is an elected official of a COUNTY that contains the city. So, no , one does not work for the other. Even for city police chiefs, the city mayor can suspend a chief, but only a Police Commission can fire him. The commission is usually appointed by the city mayor and confirmed by the city council.

Is the USA a Federation?

The exact nature and limits of this power would be contained in the State constitution and/or State law. The USA is technically a Federation of States — a Union. All power flows from the States. The States created and retain authority over the USA… and the States created and retain authority over counties and cities.

Is the Sheriff elected?

The Sheriff is almost always an elected position. In my state, the Coroner has authority over the sheriff in certain situations, and can arrest him. In my state, Judges can appoint an “Elisor” who can arrest the sheriff.

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Overview

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…

History

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".

Role

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…

Departments

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…

Nomenclature

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…

Assistant district attorney

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…

Appeals

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.

District attorney investigators

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.