why are prosecutors such pieces of shit?

[BigOrange1 6437]

6 eye witnesses testify that the defendant is not the killer, jury still convicts.  now dna evidence comes back in favor of defendant (now inmate), but prosecutors do not intend to to further investigate the case.  they got their conviction, who gives a shit if an innocent man is in prison?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-met-dice-murder-conviction-dna-20180221-story.html

[Hate 20108]

Because they are lawyers.

[TwiceHorn 31475]

Serious answer.  To one degree or another, lawyers start out fairly idealistic.  The practice of law, with harsh realities of tedium and business or dealing with human nature (depending on civil vs. criminal, to some extent) or both, frequently dashes that idealism to pieces, turning an idealist into a cynic.  A couple of things then happen, often both.  One is that it just becomes about winning.  Another is that one deludes oneself into believing one does "God's work" or some other form of (self) righteousness.  That can be a toxic and dangerous combo.

Add in the fact that everyone you deal with is some form of law enforcement or the enemy (librul defense lawyer turds) and you get an echo chamber.

It becomes very difficult, personally and institutionally, to admit error.  It takes more character than a lot of people possess.

Edited April 3, 2018 by TwiceHorn

[George 492]

Because the have an unlimited purse and seemingly never face any consequences for their fucked up behavior. 

[yoshi 137]

The jury sounds pretty terrible in that case.  

[MaybeACoordinator 8349]

Fuel to the fire.

 

Quote

After prosecutors railroaded John Thompson on a murder conviction, he came within weeks of execution before an investigator found the evidence that exonerated him. Still, the Supreme Court declined to punish the district attorney’s office that sent him to death row. Thompson’s case exposes a fundamental question: When prosecutors hold all the cards, can any defendant get a fair trial

 

Essentially, the Orleans Parish district attorney's office (under Harry Connick Sr) functioned as if there was not a Brady Law for decades. 

[F250 28776]

One time when I was testifying as an expert witness (computer forensics) I had a prosecutor come at me pretty hard. I could tell where the line of questioning was going and knew they were about to fuck up. Finally when I said "no" to a question the prosecutor reacted incredulously and repeated the question with me again saying "no." Bitch went off on me and claimed I was contradicting submitted evidence. I immediately explained her understanding of the tech involved was wrong (I mean completely ass backwards) she cut me off literally said "don't play games with me." I quickly responded "'I'm not, you are mixing up..." she cuts me off again clearly embarrassed, I look towards the judge biting my tongue trying to not grin when the defense steps in. I remember holding my breath to fight the urge to laugh. She clearly didn't understand the evidence or didn't put any effort into preparing for my testimony.

These people are major dicks.

Edited April 3, 2018 by F250

[The University 851]

kudos to you f250. i doubt i'd be able to hold back any smart ass comments in the same situation.

[Bernard 879]

They are cops with law degrees. What do you expect?

Bernard

[Lobwedgephil 1139]

4 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

erious answer.  To one degree or another, lawyers start out fairly idealistic. 

Lol, lawyers don't start out idealistic, they go to law school thinking about the money. 

[South Austin 52509]

6 hours ago, The University said:

kudos to you f250. i doubt i'd be able to hold back any smart ass comments in the same situation.

Neither could blacklab.

[bschoolprof 6254]

Well, even though all 4 state witnesses recanted on the stand, we know the shooter's  nickname was "black," and there's no way there are more than two guys who go by "black" on the south side of chicago.  Case closed.

I still think the police need to be looking for this guy:

[DanRydell 799]

Because DAs get elected by being tough on crime and ADAs get advanced by being winners.

[AggieFactFinder 31]

 

Quote

During closing arguments, prosecutor James Lynch told the jury that the earlier statements taken by police have “the same weight as someone testifying in the trial before you.”

Really?  I know hardly anything about criminal law, but I'd like to think that witness testimony under oath and subject to cross-examination carries more weight than police interviews.  And that it's up to the jury, and not the prosecutor, to assign weight.  Surprised that a prosecutor can instruct a jury in that manner.

[TwiceHorn 31475]

7 hours ago, Lobwedgephil said:

Lol, lawyers don't start out idealistic, they go to law school thinking about the money. 

While there is a great deal of truth to this, there is also usually at least a latent bit of idealism.  They're going to do great things!  Be intellectually challenged!  Play 3-D chess with other brilliant lawyers!

And, of course, it has been 25 or more years since you could go to law school and count on money when you got out.  Now it's probably 75-25 against making over 100K coming out. For the last 10 years, it has been delusional/idealistic for the average law student to even assume having a job.

And those who go to law school aiming for public service/DA careers either did not have money in mind or were delusional/idealistic.

I'm not making this shit up, this is why there is a huge dissatisfaction with legal careers and a substance abuse rate double the rest of the population.  The NC Bar and UNC have done some very in-depth studies on these issues.

Edited April 3, 2018 by TwiceHorn

[TwiceHorn 31475]

1 hour ago, DanRydell said:

Because DAs get elected by being tough on crime and ADAs get advanced by being winners.

Yes, this.

[Hate 20108]

 

[Hank Scorpio 17729]

1. No DA or judge ever lost an election for being too tough on crime. Tons have for being too soft. 

2. The entire point of the criminal justice system is to put people in jail and keep them there. Once you get arrested, the cops, prosecutors, and judges are all on the same side and they have one goal: to put the person charged with the crime in jail. There is no incentive for them to "solve" the crime or find out the "truth" except insofar as it is theoretically easier to convict the person who actually committed the crime. 

3. The repercussions for losing cases or letting people walk are much more severe than putting the wrong guy in jail. A prosecutor will catch way more heat from their bosses or from political opponents if they lose cases. So might as well put someone in jail for the crime, and if they get out in 10 years because they are innocent who cares, it's never going to blow back on the prosecutors. 

[Red Six 131]

4 hours ago, DanRydell said:

Because DAs get elected by being tough on crime and ADAs get advanced by being winners.

ADAs advance by toeing the company line. A willingness to lose because someone told you to try a case that never should have seen a jury is going to help a career more than winning a case that needed to be tried.

[Armybrat 40847]

[kopp0e 1135]

14 hours ago, Hate said:

Because they are lawyers.

That's simple enough for me...                   I was hassled by a judge (as to not speak) in trying to point out my daughter got a ticket for parking in front of handicap parking, the problem was it was in front of our neighbors home next door... Where there is in fact, no damn handicap accessible parking area or signage...

 

So I will pay the $150 out of pocket for her erroneous ticket...

[CooterBrown 18012]

1 hour ago, Hank Scorpio said:

3. The repercussions for losing cases or letting people walk are much more severe than putting the wrong guy in jail. A prosecutor will catch way more heat from their bosses or from political opponents if they lose cases. So might as well put someone in jail for the crime, and if they get out in 10 years because they are innocent who cares, it's never going to blow back on the prosecutors. 

Our system seems to be set up for retribution instead of justice.  I don't know how we get to the point where both sides seek justice or maybe there shouldn't be sides. I don't know shit.

 

[TwiceHorn 31475]

17 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

Our system seems to be set up for retribution instead of justice.  I don't know how we get to the point where both sides seek justice or maybe there shouldn't be sides. I don't know shit.

 

Very true from a sentencing perspective.  For a while there, there was concern about "uniformity" of sentences, particularly in the federal system.  But little thought seems to have ever been given to the "rationality" of sentencing, i.e. what are we trying to accomplish here and why and does this sentence actually do anything to accomplish it?

 

But that is a legislative problem, not so much a problem with the prosecution.

[hayden_horn 11362]

37 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

Our system seems to be set up for retribution instead of justice.  I don't know how we get to the point where both sides seek justice or maybe there shouldn't be sides. I don't know shit.

 

this is very true, and i could go on at length about it. i just may a little later, but the focus of not just the system, but society in general, is "throw them in a cage, and i hope they get assraped by a psychopath in there."

[David Dennison 18860]

Because our criminal justice system is not about justice, it's about social control and power.

[shakahorn 1645]

Typically, ADA-type jobs are taken by young lawyers to get experience and have something on their resume other than moot court champs and a 3.9 gpa.  So they aren't really independent thinkers coming in cuz they just have no experience.  As such, they are more prone to toeing the line as opposed to trying to innovate.

[BearSchlong 8097]

Lol, lawyers don't start out idealistic, they go to law school thinking about the money. 

Paging Kyrie Eleison. This thread is his wheelhouse.

[EuroHorn 3265]

18 hours ago, Lobwedgephil said:

Lol, lawyers don't start out idealistic, they go to law school thinking about the money. 

And come out of law school drowning in debt.