tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45462490891497407592024-03-12T20:51:26.805-04:00 Prosecutor's Discretionprosecutorsdiscretion@gmail.comProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.comBlogger294125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-16537083961048507012015-07-20T21:33:00.002-04:002015-07-20T21:33:58.661-04:00The Jail House SnitchThere is no lower form of testimony, of evidence. Yet, it is one of the most prevalent kinds of evidence in criminal cases. Police rely on jail house informants to make arrests, prosecutors rely on the evidence to obtain convictions, and appellate courts routinely uphold convictions when jail house informants testify against the defendant.
Even though this type of testimony should be viewed Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-46110788959403747212015-05-03T21:21:00.000-04:002015-05-03T21:21:22.517-04:00The Life of a Former ProsecutorEveryone asks me about my old DA life - So, do you miss it? Like anything, the answer is yes and no. It has been a (somewhat) smooth transition to private practice so far. Even for an experienced attorney, the new challenge was not without hurdles. The most critical part of private practice was also that for which I was least prepared.
In the DA's office, I did not answer to clients. I had Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-77859918375189683502015-03-11T09:53:00.004-04:002015-03-11T10:06:21.437-04:00A New JourneyDear readers,
You have probably noticed a lack of posts in the last few months. The reasons are many, but primarily I was not sure what direction to take this blog or even to continue it at all.
I have been honest with all of you the last few years, trying to provide a glimpse into the life of a prosecutor. I pulled back the curtain and let you know the good and the bad. Now, you deserve Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-29040772048723434022015-01-04T19:26:00.004-05:002015-01-04T19:26:59.145-05:00How a Grand Jury Actually WorksThis post is a little late to the party, but I thought it necessary to explain how a grand jury actually works in New York State with all that was written and reported over the last few months.
The grand jury consists of twenty-three jurors, who are citizens in the county they are called to serve in. They are asked to serve for a period of time, usually a month. The number of times they meet perProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-2640662315260012252014-12-10T10:16:00.001-05:002014-12-10T10:16:06.454-05:00ABA Top 100 Nominee!
For the first time since I started doing this, the American Bar Association has nominated the lowly staff of one over here at Prosecutor's Discretion for its annual inclusion in the top legal blogs (or blawgs).
I am very excited to be nominated and that means that someone reads all of this and appreciates its content. But it's not over. Voting is open for an even more exclusive club, Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-16272717962052708612014-12-03T22:00:00.000-05:002014-12-03T22:00:30.045-05:00The Prosecutor's DecisionOn Monday, I posted a hypothetical fact pattern based on different cases we see in my office. Check it out here.
This is a difficult case as it is laid out. There were many comments and emails from readers with good questions and suggestions on what type of evidence should be collected.
Let me put what the prosecutor looks at. If these are the only facts, we cannot prove the case Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-46474576870104682962014-12-01T20:35:00.002-05:002014-12-01T20:35:42.599-05:00Make the Prosecutor's DecisionA girl meets a boy on Facebook through a mutual "friend." She thinks he's pretty cute so she decides to send him a message. He accepts the friendship and invites her over to his house. Welcome to teenage dating in 2014.
You're already thinking to yourself that this kind of story can only have a romantic ending, right?
The girl goes to the boy's house in the middle of the day. She knows she's Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-12131495377468016322014-11-05T20:22:00.002-05:002014-11-05T20:22:41.842-05:00When the Secret is OutNext week I begin a trial that I finished last month. Why is that? The court severed the two defendants and required they be tried separately because they each made statements that implicate the other one. It's what we call a Bruton issue.
This basically means that when one defendant makes a statement to the police implicating the co-defendant, the defendant who did not make the statement Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-55123550743702454122014-10-27T21:53:00.001-04:002014-10-27T21:53:15.626-04:00A Trial Nobody Cares AboutPart of this site's purpose is to provide a glimpse into the world of the prosecutor. I want to give you a view into who we are and what we really do. There are television shows, books, and movies where famous actors portray the prosecutors and defense attorneys as they battle in some high profile case.
That's not me. I'm one of thousands of anonymous women and men. I'm in the trenches fighting Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-91335656776543954852014-10-20T20:54:00.001-04:002014-10-20T20:54:20.218-04:00An Unexpected AbsenceI am sorry for the delayed and unexplained absence. I have had two successive, intense trials, sleepless children, many other cases, and have moved houses since my last post. I did not have the time or internet connection to post anything. Those of you waiting for email responses, thank you for your patience.
A lot has happened and there are some great things to discuss. But I am typing this Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-6761579731076153462014-09-08T21:13:00.001-04:002014-09-08T21:13:14.949-04:00A Hung JuryIt was the first time it's happened to me. After a week of testimony and hours of deliberation, the jury declared they would never be able to reach a verdict. They were "hopelessly deadlocked" as the law requires.
What it really means is that I must endure the stress of a trial again. The victim and witnesses must answer questions on cross-examination about their past misdeeds. The police Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-76782617360396140512014-08-24T20:45:00.001-04:002014-08-24T20:46:53.482-04:00An Interview with Deborah HalberLast week, I reviewed The Skeleton Crew by Deborah Halber. After reading it, Deborah was kind enough to answer some questions that might interest you the reader. Here is the interview and here is the link to the review.
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Prosecutor's Discretion: In the book you are pretty open in discussing your experience with P. Michael MurphyProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-46390243503552947622014-08-18T22:47:00.001-04:002014-08-18T22:47:30.588-04:00The Skeleton Crew by Deborah HalberDeborah Halber gives us The Skeleton Crew, which is actually a number of nonfiction crime stories in one book. The twist is that the book chronicles anonymous do-gooders who spend virtually every minute of their free time scouring databases for unidentified human remains and trying to match them to a missing person case. As Halber says, "The web sleuths are all around you. Your coworker withProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-58809863849554575342014-07-28T11:48:00.001-04:002014-07-28T11:48:36.686-04:00A Little Help from My FriendsI return to the office this week after a two and a half week leave for the birth of my child. I did my best to leave all of July open from court appearances so that no one would have to cover any cases for me.
Even those with the best intentions and planning fail sometimes though. Inevitably, courts schedule cases when I was not available and new cases come in all the time. What that means for Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-19806401446294952272014-07-16T21:46:00.000-04:002014-07-16T21:46:03.298-04:00You be the JudgeAnother installment where you get to decide the sentence of a person who committed a crime.
Ready for the facts?
Three 25 year old defendants get together and form a plan to make some money. They decide to break into stores after they are closed and steal cash and property. They wear hooded sweatshirts, masks, and gloves, then throw a brick through a window. Once the window is down, they Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-64426044797782918622014-07-08T20:40:00.001-04:002014-07-08T20:40:04.796-04:00Do I Gotta Come?This is the most frequent question I hear. It comes from victims, witnesses, and yes police officers. It's on my voicemail, it's over the phone, and it's in person.
This question is especially pervasive in the teenage population, which has become my specialty in recent years. Here's how it normally goes after I answer the phone:
Me: District Attorney's Office
Witness: Someone dropped someProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-52087724120994979812014-06-18T21:16:00.001-04:002014-06-18T21:16:05.699-04:00Number 34's Not Too BadTwo posts in a week after intermittently updating for the last month or so?
In the busy cycle that is a DA's office and the time I like to spend with my family, I neglected to inform you that Prosecutor's Discretion was selected as one of the Top 50 Criminal Law Blogs of the past year. Here's the link to the rankings.
I didn't ask what they are based on, as I was just glad someone reads this Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-27041430551752934552014-06-16T21:51:00.000-04:002014-06-16T21:52:11.663-04:00It's Not About the Elk
Former Police Officer Sam Carter shot an elk to death while on duty in Boulder, Colorado on New Year's Day 2013.
What happened next started a series of events that led to jurors convicting Carter on June 3, 2014, after four hours of deliberations. Carter killed "Big Boy," an apparently beloved bull elk in the town. He claimed his actions were an effort to put an ailing animal out of its Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-30795253188309146452014-05-27T10:44:00.000-04:002014-05-27T10:44:53.740-04:00Death or Jail?I'm reminded every day of the harsh reality of life on the street. I have daily conversations with witnesses about why they should testify in a case. The inevitable response is some variation of "You don't know what it's like" or "You don't live in my neighborhood."
The first statement is not true. I know exactly what it is like, probably more than the person I'm speaking to due to my long andProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-3235947619074507212014-05-08T22:35:00.001-04:002014-05-08T22:35:43.347-04:00A Difficult WeekPosts have been infrequent these past few weeks as you might have noticed. The reason is simple-work. It has piled up and exploded, particularly this week. One of the rules of this blog is that I cannot discuss pending cases, for both legal and ethical reasons.
I will not divulge facts, but I was assigned the most difficult case of my career this week, emotionally and factually. It's the type Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-29018417647596329932014-04-30T21:31:00.001-04:002014-04-30T21:31:06.276-04:00The House HuntSo, we're taking the plunge into the marketplace. 2009 brought with it the best buyer's market in history. 2014, not so much. The truth was we weren't in a position to buy a few years ago. We really aren't in a position to do it now, but a quickly expanding family is forcing our hand.
We visited a home tonight that was in need of a major update (that means it's in our price range). The basementProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-43740808903849005062014-04-14T20:49:00.000-04:002014-04-14T20:49:20.107-04:00In the Line of Duty
There have been some stark realities recently about what it means to be in law enforcement.
NYPD Officer Dennis Guerra was killed while running into an apartment building to save lives after the call of a fire, which was set by a 16 year old arsonist.
Officer Guerra left behind four children and a wife after making the ultimate sacrifice. Head over to Huff Post for some incredible Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-2220291929258719772014-04-03T15:13:00.000-04:002014-04-03T15:13:10.169-04:00My WeaknessWe have been interviewing candidates at my office for a few positions. The screening and selection of candidates is interesting as are the truly unbelievable interviews (both good and bad). One of my colleagues always asks for the candidate to explain their perceived weaknesses.
I'm currently on vacation with my family. It was much needed after the brutal Winter and long trial. As I sit here Prosecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-71913851720850635182014-03-19T11:19:00.001-04:002014-03-19T11:19:38.261-04:00Never Ask Me How Long the Jury Was OutI'm just as guilty of it as the next lawyer. We see our colleagues in their office biting their nails or aimlessly looking through files. The lawyer had just finished their closing statements and the court had instructed the jury on the legal charges, sending the jury to perform their sworn duty.
Every few minutes a well-intentioned co-worker pops their head in and asks, "What time did the juryProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4546249089149740759.post-28110532387135458942014-03-07T12:32:00.001-05:002014-03-07T12:32:46.491-05:00A Published Writer
Yours truly here at Prosecutor's Discretion has his first short story published! I am extremely excited to be a part of Winter's Regret, by The Elephant's Bookshelf Press.
It's a much different feeling than being published in legal journals. In those journals you already have a conclusion and show everyone how to get to that conclusion through a legal analysis. In fiction, the characters makeProsecutor's Discretionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16052776388565362412noreply@blogger.com3