Word: davises
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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Her beef is not so much with prosecutors breaking the rules, although plenty do. In 2003 the nonpartisan Center for Public Integrity found that prosecutorial misconduct led to charges being dismissed, convictions reversed or sentences reduced in more than 2,000 cases since 1970. Davis' greater worry is all the...
When prosecutors pick which criminal charges to file, they need have only probable cause, or reasonable belief that the suspect committed the crimes charged. This low standard creates room to pile on the most severe charges possible to bully a defendant into a plea bargain. If a case ends up...
The Constitution requires a grand jury to indict a suspect before he can be tried for a federal felony, and about half the states have a similar setup. This panel of ordinary people is supposed to check the prosecutor's power by making him present a preliminary case in a...
The vast majority of defendants cut deals because fighting charges at trial can result in much longer sentences. Prosecutors and public defenders like to settle cases too, given their massive caseloads. But prosecutors generally hold all the cards: in a case's early stages, a defendant rarely knows how strong...
As Davis advocates putting these new rules in legal-ethics codes enforced by state bars, prosecutors argue that such changes would tie their hands unnecessarily. But some prosecutors are at least willing to open themselves to scrutiny. In places like Milwaukee, San Diego and Charlotte, N.C., they are letting the...