Letting the Big Ones Get Away a Focus on Ethics - Case Study Example

Introduction to Criminal Justice - Letting the Big Ones Get Away a Focus on Ethics Background of the case In various prosecution cases ethics plays an important role in the quest for justice. The most important of these ethical considerations are normally prop-up in the differential cases which arise in the trial of high profile defendant cases as opposed to the relatively weaker ones. The unethical behavior of criminal defendants and witnesses who are hell-bent on avoiding trial or becoming hostile respectively has presented the grave challenges to the legal profession, especially the prosecution. In this case, a high profile criminal suspect who has evaded several prosecution attempts in the past is determined to walk his usual road. Through his defense attorney, he has agreed to offer a wrong testimony against her girlfriend, that the kilo of cocaine belonged to her. But oblivious of dangers that await her, the girlfriend refuses to testify against the drug suspect because they are having an affair. Anyway, it would be unethical to send the woman to 40 years in prison for a crime she did not commit. As an assistant prosecutor who has build an excellent reputation based on the prosecution of high profile cases involving drugs, the pressure coming from the state’s attorney not to budge on any drug cases adds to my work the impetus and ethical obligation to act on this case. Although, the state’s attorney has good intentions of ridding the state of drug barons, it is unethical to peg his political ambitions on the quest for justice; otherwise he/she may be guilty of violating office ethics. Nailing the couple would be seem ethical, considering the fact that the exhibit was found in the woman’s house, doing so may be a tall order in the quest for justice. Of the two, though, the man is the main suspect owning the cocaine, and having the woman testify against him would strengthen the prosecutor case against him and most likely lead to his imprisonment. Significance of the witness statement In every prosecution, getting the testimony of the right witness is a very important factor in the success or failure of a case (Plant, 2007). In this case, the woman is the right witness who should testify against the suspected criminal to strengthen the prosecutor’s case. Nonetheless, the woman has all the qualities of a hostile witness because the criminal suspect is her close partner. The witness definitely has clear details of the kilo of cocaine case but could be reluctant to offer testimony regarding those details because by so doing, she could incriminate the partner (Stark, 1999). Regardless, I would approach her again with a view to informing her of the need to cooperate with the prosecution. According to Plant (2007) a witness can be compelled by court to testify, provided he or she is not a defendant. In this case, the woman is not cushioned by law against giving testimony. The Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution bars courts within the country from self-incrimination (Fuller, 2010). Miranda ruling also underscores the need to refrain from collecting witness statements and using them to charge the same witness. Nonetheless, the privilege disbars a witness from refusing to respond to questions because the answers she gives might expose him or her to civil problem, social humiliation, injury of status, or loss of a job (Stark, 1999). Additionally, a witness cannot base his or her claims on the fact that a statement can implicate a third party. Nonetheless, the right against self-incrimination remains invalid when a witness gives testimony within an impartial organization such as a court of law. Although, the right guards against witness intimidation with a view to obtaining a skewed testimony, when a compulsion makes a witness the source of credible or tangible evidence it suffices (Fuller, 2010). In this case, the woman would be a key witness in the drug case, and as such she would not be counted protected under the law not to testify. I would, therefore, secure a subpoena to compel her to testify, if she remained adamant. Due to the nature of this case, it would be important to offer the witness immunity against prosecution in order to have her testify. Alternatively, I may assign an attorney who is not involved in the case in any way to help her with answering the right questions in order to avoid incriminating herself in the drug case (Stark, 1999). Like most witnesses, Fuller (2010) argues that the woman might be unwilling to give accurate testimony. If that was the case, I would ask the judge to declare the witness hostile, in order to enable me to use leading questions in an effort to acquire credible facts from her. For instance, I would administer leading questions by reading statements relating to the case of suspected criminal, and ask the witness for a true of false statement. Failure to verify or refute the attorney's accounts by the witness could lead to her prosecution for non-cooperation (Fuller, 2010). Additionally, charges of perjury might then be preferred against her if she gave false details, as this is against the oath administered to witnesses. Public records exception Despite the significance of witness testimony in securing the successful prosecution, there are other options, which can either be exploited in case the witness turns hostile or used simultaneously with the key witness statement (Plant, 2007). It is therefore, imaginable that the woman might not testify against the defendant at all, due to her relationship with him. If the key witness fails to testify willingly, the case would not be a cropper. In the absence of the witness, I would go about the case by first considering the use of other sources of evidence apart from the live witness in order to nail both of them. In such a scenario, there would be no need to go slow on her owing to her refusal to take to the witness stand, despite damning evidence which she holds. The fact that the exhibit was found in her house would be enough to implicate her in the case as her boyfriend’s accomplice. Granted, I would look for a document that meets the legal threshold of the hearsay exceptions. One of such documents that can be used is the public records exception. This legal option allows prosecutors to introduce evidence obtained from government agencies responsible for law enforcement; the police (Fuller, 2010). The use of police reports such as statements taken from the suspect, forensic evidence documents among other documents about the cocaine would be a credible option to a live witness. This however, does not come easily. The police are oftentimes awfully unwilling to give testimony. They normally require a subpoena and fee payment in order to take to the witness stand, in which case they refrain from divulging more details due to the oath administered to them. A police report would then come in handy (Stark, 1999). Such a document would enable me to be well-versed on the issues pertaining to the case beforehand in regard to the confiscation of the cocaine and identify the sections of sections of the police report that would be of importance to the prosecution. After ascertaining the veracity of the police reports, I would ask the judges to declare it an admissible piece of evidence before the court. Conclusion Generally, ethical considerations point to the need to prosecute the crafty criminal suspect who has evaded several past trials. Regardless of the woman’s criminal past and her involvement in the current case, she should be used as a prosecution witness to nail her husband who has evaded the prosecutor’s dragnet for long. Owing to the important role of the woman if she took to the witness stand, I would put up several measures to have her testify. It would be important to inform her of her vulnerability to the charges of harboring a criminal and the exhibit in her house. If she refuses, a subpoena would be introduced to compel her to testify against the crafty criminal suspect, with the assurance that she would be granted immunity against any charges related to the cocaine find, in exchange. Police statements would also be used together with the witness statements or alone should she fail to testify in order to ensure successful prosecution. References Fuller, J. R. (2010). Criminal justice: Mainstream and crosscurrents. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Plant, B. (2007). On Testimony, Sincerity and Truth. Paragraph, 30(1), 30-50. Stark, J. (1999). The Task of Testimony. History & Memory, 11(2), 37. Read More