“You’ve been to my office, haven’t you?” The Experienced Prosecutor Course

by Jim Dedman, Director of Academics

At the Experienced Prosecutor Course, supervising prosecutors will recognize people and problems from their offices among the issues and fictitious staff of prosecutors in the materials. “We have this same problem” or “this reminds me of a prosecutor we have” are frequent comments in the workshop discussions. Using a progressive office management situation, which changes each day, prosecutors have a chance to discuss and resolve issues before having to confront them head-on in the real world. The obvious benefit is the “shared solutions” offered by the faculty and the other supervisors.

The Experienced Prosecutor Course is designed for the supervising prosecutor who still has direct responsibility for a trial docket. It has long been popular with both rural and urban prosecutors. The format of the course combines presentations on supervision topics and matters of interest to prosecutors nationally. Prosecutors are assigned to supervise a staff of 10 trial attorneys who reflect many typical problems and issues. The National College seeks to offer the course in a relaxed setting, and the March 21-25, 2004, course will be in historic Williamsburg, VA.

The course will also offer presentations on working with the media, ethical concerns for supervisors and developments in courtroom technology.