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| Crown prosecutor | |
|---|---|
| Office | Crown prosecutor |
| Type | Public prosecutor |
| Incumbent | varies by jurisdiction |
| Formation | varies |
| Precursor | District attorney; State prosecutor |
| Salary | varies |
Crown prosecutor is a public official who represents the prosecuting authority in criminal proceedings on behalf of the state or monarch in jurisdictions following common law traditions. The role combines functions seen in offices such as Director of Public Prosecutions (England and Wales), Crown Prosecution Service, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Ireland), Director of Public Prosecutions (Hong Kong), and state or provincial counterparts like the Office of the Attorney General (Ontario). Crown prosecutors routinely interact with institutions such as the Magistrates' Court (England and Wales), County Court, High Court of Justice, and superior appellate forums including the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom or High Court of Australia.
Crown prosecutors prosecute indictable and summary offences, advise investigative agencies such as the Metropolitan Police Service, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Australian Federal Police, Police Service of Northern Ireland, and review police files from entities like the Federal Bureau of Investigation or National Crime Agency. They decide whether charges proceed to trial before courts such as the Crown Court (England and Wales), County Court (California) equivalents, or specialist tribunals like the Special Criminal Court (Ireland). Prosecutors prepare trial briefs, call witnesses, examine expert evidence from bodies like the Forensic Science Service and Victim Support, and present submissions to judges from courts including the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Federal Court of Australia, and Supreme Court of Canada.
Appointment mechanisms vary: heads may be appointed by offices such as the Lord Chancellor, Governor General of Canada, Governor-General of Australia, Secretary of State for Justice (UK), or accountable to legislatures like the Parliament of the United Kingdom or Canadian Parliament. Jurisdictional scope is defined by statutes such as the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 (England and Wales), the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth), or constitutions like the Constitution of Australia and Constitution of Canada. Subnational prosecutors answer to entities like the Attorney General of New South Wales, Attorney General of Ontario, or the United States Department of Justice counterparts while international tribunals such as the International Criminal Court and International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia employ prosecutors with analogous mandates.
In court, prosecutors make opening statements, call witnesses, tender documentary exhibits including reports from agencies like INTERPOL and Europol, and examine and cross-examine witnesses before juries or magistrates in venues such as the Old Bailey or provincial courthouse. They must comply with rules of procedure from codes like the Criminal Procedure Rules (England and Wales), Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (US), and evidentiary standards from jurisprudence including precedents set by the European Court of Human Rights and the Supreme Court of Canada. Duties also include advising victims under schemes like the Victims' Rights Directive and managing disclosure obligations influenced by cases such as R v Turnbull and R v Stinchcombe.
Prosecutors exercise charging discretion, decide plea offers, and withdraw prosecutions where appropriate, guided by statutory tests such as the public interest criteria in the Code for Crown Prosecutors and prosecutorial guidelines like those issued by the Director of Public Prosecutions (England and Wales). Discretional acts can be scrutinized by judicial review in courts like the High Court (England and Wales), Federal Court of Australia, or through oversight by offices such as the Independent Office for Police Conduct and parliamentary committees like the Justice Select Committee.
Ethical obligations derive from codes and case law, for example principles endorsed by the Bar Standards Board, Law Society of England and Wales, Canadian Bar Association, and rulings from the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Accountability mechanisms include ministerial oversight by figures such as the Attorney General (United Kingdom), statutory commissioners like the Victims' Commissioner for England and Wales, independent inspectors such as Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate, and disciplinary processes before courts including the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom or professional tribunals.
Prosecutors commonly begin as barristers or solicitors admitted to bodies like the Bar Council or the Law Society of Ireland, or as advocates in systems like Scotland's Faculty of Advocates. Career progression moves through roles in agencies such as the Crown Prosecution Service, Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (New South Wales), and can lead to senior appointments like Director of Public Prosecutions (England and Wales), Solicitor General (United Kingdom), or judicial elevation to courts such as the High Court of Justice and appellate benches including the Court of Appeal (England and Wales).
Equivalent offices include the District Attorney (United States), State Attorney (Brazil), Procurador Fiscal (Portugal), Procureur de la République (France), and the Public Prosecutor General (Germany). Variations reflect civil law and common law differences in countries like Japan, South Africa, India, and federal arrangements in Canada and Australia, or supranational prosecution at institutions such as the International Criminal Court and the European Public Prosecutor's Office.
Category:Prosecutors