National Association of Prosecutor Coordinators

Anyone Got a Good Speaker on .... ?

By Thomas Robertson, President, National Association of Prosecutor Coordinators
Exceutive Secretary, Michigan Prosecuting Attorneys Coordinators Council

When prosecutor coordinator offices began popping up around the country in the early 1970s, their primary focus was to improve the continuing professional education and training of prosecutors. While we have expanded services into legislative advocacy, case management systems, specialized trial teams and other areas, continuing professional education remains Job One.

NAPC members originated the trial advocacy courses that are routinely provided around the country. In Michigan, we began videotaping trial exercises and providing constructive criticism of the prosecutors’ performances in the mid-1980s. We now run trial ad for new prosecutors, prosecutors with two-five years’ experience, and even a program for grizzled veterans. Rick Malone in Georgia has taken this training to a new level, hiring actors and citizens to serve as witnesses and real jurors as they conduct the sessions in actual courtrooms.

Several states, like California, have training units that focus exclusively on specialized areas, such as domestic violence and sexual assault, DWI and vehicular homicide, elder abuse, white collar crime, and capital litigation. Randy Hillman in Alabama is leading the charge to establish a national center for training on computer forensics.

NAPC members constantly educate each other on the latest training methods and programs and the best speakers. If a fantastic speaker from another state was a hit at one of your latest training programs, you can bet on the fact that they were referred by a prosecutor coordinator.