Where Eagles Meet

When the prosecutors attending the Trial Advocacy I course at the NAC walked into NDAA Courtroom Five on Tuesday morning, December 11, Billy O’Malley smiled down at them. On that day that courtroom became the William C. O’Malley Courtroom, and the smile came from the wonderful portrait of O’Malley that hangs prominently behind the trial bench. To the late Billy O’Malley, district attorney in Brockton, Massachusetts, former president of NDAA, member of the Board of Regents of the National College, and graduate of the Career Prosecutor Course, prosecutor training was of paramount importance. Delivering the John Price Lecture at the Career Prosecutor Course in Houston in June of 1995, O’Malley said, “Competence means more than a passing grade on a bar exam. It means the dedication to and maintaining and improving knowledge and skills much in the manner of what you are engaged in here at the National College of District Attorneys.”

Over 600 prosecutors attend the Trial Advocacy I course each year at the National Advocacy Center. Over 150 faculty members, often career prosecutors themselves, assist the course attendees as they work their way through case analysis and role-playing courtroom situations. While the Trial Advocacy I course includes a presentation on prosecution ethics, it is rare that attendees can be so vividly reminded of the examples of professionalism within our ranks as they were during the dedication of the O’Malley Courtroom. On Thursday when a faculty member spoke about prosecution professionalism, there was a better understanding of the concept of the model public prosecutor because they had learned about one Tuesday morning.

O’Malley told the Houston attendees “I have heard the NDAA described as the place where eagles meet. It is one of the few places where prosecutors can always find people who understand the work they do and offer their help and support.” The training by the college around the country and at the NAC is an embodiment of that statement as the veteran faculty provides the benefit of experience to the newer generation of public prosecutors.

It is appropriate that the William C. O’Malley Courtroom be one of those few places where eagles meet.