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Violated Trust: Conceptualizing Prosecutorial Misconduct

NCJ Number
210649
Journal
Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice Volume: 21 Issue: 3 Dated: August 2005 Pages: 250-271
Author(s)
Heather Schoenfeld
Date Published
August 2005
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This article presents a theoretical explanation of prosecutorial misconduct.
Abstract
Prosecutorial misconduct, while not oft studied, deserves far more research attention given the power that prosecutors wield and the prevalence of prosecutorial misconduct as a factor in overturned cases. In an attempt to stimulate research interest in the problem of prosecutorial misconduct, the current article builds a theory of prosecutorial misconduct that relies on the characterization of prosecutors as agents of trust. Prosecutorial misconduct represents the violation of that trust and is explained using theories of occupational crime to show how the structure of the trust relationship creates both the motivation and the opportunities for misconduct. The reward structure of the job coupled with prosecutors’ own definitions of success influence the motivation to engage in misconduct, which is only strengthened by a lack of serious sanctions for prosecutorial misbehavior. Also discussed as influential in the decision to engage in misconduct are the availability of techniques of neutralization, the workplace subculture, and prosecutors’ own values and beliefs. The theory is thus able to account for why misconduct is so widespread and why some prosecutors are more likely to engage in this behavior than others. In closing, the author lays out specific hypotheses based on their theory that need to be tested using multiple research projects; research methodologies are suggested. Notes, references