The new year brings in a new administration in Washington, new occupants of the White House and a new attorney general of the United States.
At this writing, and because of the deadlines for this issue of The Prosecutor, we don’t know who the new attorney general will be. But whomever President Bush chooses, our message to the new AG will be the same.
Dear Attorney General:
On behalf of the National District Attorneys Association and the local prosecutors of the United States, we wish you well.
Over the years, NDAA has had close relations with attorneys general and the Department of Justice, irrespective of the political complexion of the administrations and the attorneys general. We look forward to having the same close professional relationship with you. After all, our goals are identical. We both seek justice. In most areas our interests and concerns coincide. However, as you know, in striving for that goal, the road to justice sometimes can be bumpy and strewn with obstacles, some of which have been placed in the way with the best of intentions.
So we offer several suggestions.
We respectfully urge that you resist any attempts to further expand the federalization of local crimes and that in those cases involving concurrent jurisdiction, the criterion be a compelling federal interest.
We would hope that you would continue the efforts pressed by your immediate predecessors to develop better rapport among federal prosecutors, state and local prosecutors and the various layers of law enforcement agencies. Former attorneys general have made an admirable start in attempting to eliminate turf battles and encouraging more cooperation, but this is a field that requires continuous care and cultivating.
We hope to work with you in enhancing the prosecution ethic, so that we, representing the state and local prosecutors of this nation, and you, using the prestige of your high office, can develop a better public understanding of the mission and responsibilities of our nation’s prosecutors. We consider this one of the highest priorities of our profession.
Each era seems to produce its unique crime problems, such as organized crime that flourished from the 1940s through the ‘80s and white-collar crime in the 1980s and ‘90s. I’m sure you will agree that one of the most formidable challenges facing the criminal justice system as we move into the twenty-first century is cyber crime. The Internet and sophisticated software enable this crime to reach into homes as well as businesses, financial institutions and even the government—in fact, into every aspect of society around the world.
Because of the universality of the problem, all prosecutors, whether they are in the largest metropolitan jurisdictions or the smallest rural areas, must be well trained and have the latest and most effective tools to deal with cyber crime. We hope to work with you and the Department of Justice in developing such tools and programs. For your information, our research, training and technical assistance affiliate, the American Prosecutors Research Institute (APRI), has worked with DOJ in developing a very successful program for prosecutors in another important and rapidly expanding field: the use of DNA evidence.
There are a number of other specific issues in which we have a common interest and problems in which we have common concerns. We hope to be discussing these with you. We have found that the Executive Working Group (EWG) has become an extraordinarily valuable forum in which to discuss these issues and concerns.
Meanwhile we welcome you and look forward to a mutually productive relationship.
