Prosecution Vs. Defense
Prosecution versus Defense
Within the walls of any courtroom exemplified is the adversarial system of the United States of America between prosecutors and attorneys. In a logical sense, both roles and responsibilities are somewhat similar but contrasting.
A prosecutor’s primary role is that of a minister of justice, and not simply that of an advocate in guarding the rights of the accused as well as enforcing the rights of the public (Tragos, n.d.). Of course, as a minister of justice and not that of an advocate, a prosecutor possesses the power of operating with few legal constraints regarding decision making, which accounts for the use of discretion. In contrast, defense counsel represent the accused of society, the role of the defense
counsel is to provide his or her client with the best defense possible including providing legal counsel to client, arguing for legal innocence, searching out violations of the defendant’s rights, and arguing for reduced penalties in some cases (Meyer and Grant, 2003).
As stated earlier, prosecutors and defense counsels’ roles and responsibilities are somewhat similar in terms of representation and actions; the prosecutor represents society or the government and the people, while defense counsel represents a member or members of the said society. In addition, both also seek justice for whom they represent and must display an ethical level of conduct in their every-day operations. However, a prosecutor’s role and responsibility in seeking justice is very different from a defense counsel. The burden of proof lies on the prosecutor; he or she has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty, while a defense counsel’s responsibility is somewhat less because where the burden of proof lies.
References
Meyer, J. & Grant, D. (2003). The courts in our criminal justice system. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Tragos, E., G. (n.d.). Prosecutors, Know Your Criminal Defense Lawyer. Retrieved February 10, 2009, from http://justice.law.stetson.edu/lawrev/abstracts/PDF/29-1Tragos.pdf
Within the walls of any courtroom exemplified is the adversarial system of the United States of America between prosecutors and attorneys. In a logical sense, both roles and responsibilities are somewhat similar but contrasting.
A prosecutor’s primary role is that of a minister of justice, and not simply that of an advocate in guarding the rights of the accused as well as enforcing the rights of the public (Tragos, n.d.). Of course, as a minister of justice and not that of an advocate, a prosecutor possesses the power of operating with few legal constraints regarding decision making, which accounts for the use of discretion. In contrast, defense counsel represent the accused of society, the role of the defense
counsel is to provide his or her client with the best defense possible including providing legal counsel to client, arguing for legal innocence, searching out violations of the defendant’s rights, and arguing for reduced penalties in some cases (Meyer and Grant, 2003).
As stated earlier, prosecutors and defense counsels’ roles and responsibilities are somewhat similar in terms of representation and actions; the prosecutor represents society or the government and the people, while defense counsel represents a member or members of the said society. In addition, both also seek justice for whom they represent and must display an ethical level of conduct in their every-day operations. However, a prosecutor’s role and responsibility in seeking justice is very different from a defense counsel. The burden of proof lies on the prosecutor; he or she has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty, while a defense counsel’s responsibility is somewhat less because where the burden of proof lies.
References
Meyer, J. & Grant, D. (2003). The courts in our criminal justice system. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Tragos, E., G. (n.d.). Prosecutors, Know Your Criminal Defense Lawyer. Retrieved February 10, 2009, from http://justice.law.stetson.edu/lawrev/abstracts/PDF/29-1Tragos.pdf