The prosecution is an integral part of the legal process. In any given case, prosecutors play a dual role. They represent the government’s side, supervise the investigation of a crime, and make sure all procedures meet requirements. At the same time, they act for the people: victims rely on them for justice, and the public wants to know the truth (Siegel & Worrall, 2014; The ethical prosecutor, 2016). A prosecutor bears high responsibility and must employ appropriate methods to ensure justice is served. Still, it is an unfortunate fact that unprofessional conduct sometimes occurs among prosecutors. To address such issues, it is necessary for the legal community to take necessary actions to establish both preventive and punitive measures.
The idea of ethical behavior is dependent upon people’s natural inclinations: the majority of people want to act ethically, but the understanding of what is right and wrong often differs from person to person (Robbennolt & Sternlight, 2013). As a result, ethical blind spots appear. While people generally believe their perception to be objective, there is a tendency for humans to consider one’s own decisions as competent and unbiased. To avoid any confusion or misalignment in ideas of right and wrong, a set of ethical standards is demanded. A jurisdiction’s rules of professional conduct offer ethical norms that orient prosecutors and guide them toward making an ethical decision in any situation.
Unfortunately, the existing regulations do not guarantee professional conduct. The most common ethical violations among prosecutors are concealing exculpatory evidence, intentionally giving false testimony, misleading witnesses, and prosecuting former criminals after DNA testing has proven their innocence (Robbennolt & Sternlight, 2013). Indeed, prosecutors do break rules, and sometimes it is almost impossible to decide whether such a violation actually happened. For example, the recent case of Officer Darren Wilson, who killed an unarmed man named Michael Brown, is widely known (Department of Justice report, 2015). In handling the case, St. Louis Prosecutor Bob McCulloch was accused of misconduct for allegedly misleading the jury; an advocacy group even filed a bar complaint against him (Van Brunt, 2015). Another example demonstrates a more direct and clear violation of ethics. In this case, defendant Mark Manyik claimed that the prosecutor committed misconduct when he described the events, relationships, and shooting while imitating the victim’s voice (Judgement affirmed, 2016).
Under such circumstances, it is necessary to address such possible ethics violations in a variety of ways. Preventative measures, such as improving ethics education and adopting rigorous procedures, are especially significant because they will engage all prosecutors. Possible administrative measures include private and public reprimands, suspension from work, and disbarment.
In conclusion, unprofessional conduct in prosecution still takes place. Whether it is hidden or explicit, the legal community as a whole must struggle against it and pay more attention to ethics from the very beginning of prosecutors’ careers. To improve the system, both preventive measures and sanctions should be practiced.
References
Judgement affirmed in part, reversed in part, and case remanded with directions. (2016). Web.
Robbennolt, J. K., & Sternlight, J. R. (2013). Behavioral legal ethics. Arizona State Law Journal, 45(3), 1-76.
Siegel, L. J., & Worrall, J. L. (2014). Essentials of criminal justice. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning. The ethical prosecutor. (2016). Web.
Van Brunt, A. (2015). Prosecutors shouldn’t have immunity from their unethical – or unlawful – acts.The Guardian. Web.