Prosecutorial Discretion
The cluster discusses prosecutors' extensive discretion in deciding whether to charge, what crimes to pursue, overcharging tactics, selective enforcement, and lack of accountability, with references to cases like Aaron Swartz.
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the article explains that they do in fact prosecute thootherwise i agree
Only if a prosecutor wants it to be.
There are several supposedly built-in safeguards to protect our country's citizens from abuse, inflicted by the government.One is the law. The idea that representatives that people elect will end up creating just laws.If that fucks up, then ...Prosecutors who prosecute on behalf of the state (as in country here, US, not necessarily a specific state) can chose not to prosecute a case. If they have a teenager who smuggled a little pot from Mexico or they have a white collar embezzlement c
You forgot about prosecutorial immunity.
He's still being prosecuted for the more serious crimes. Prosecutors pick and choose which things to actually try to make stick all the time, it's basically their job.
It is unfortunate that prosecutors have so much discretion that they can enforce selective prosecution. On one side they bully people like Aaron Schwartz for victimless misdemeanors by threatening them with decades in prison and on the other side they can let go murders like Darren Wilson with no charges.
No, but who's going to prosecute?
Yes, and criminals routinely abuse it. There is a "right" for the prosecutor to prosecute a crime, too.
The prosecutor is probably pressing charges for political reasons.
Prosecutors have wide discretion in whether or not to charge people. Perhaps they should exercise that discretion.