April 19, 2004 |
2004-R-0261 | |
CRIMINAL JUSTICE COMMISSION NOMINEE | ||
By: George Coppolo, Chief Attorney | ||
You asked for questions for Criminal Justice Nominees.
BACKGROUND
Every five years, the Criminal Justice Commission appoints the administrative head of the Division of Criminal Justice whose title is chief state’s attorney (CGS § 51-278). It also appoints two deputy chief state’s attorneys as assistant administrative heads of the Division of Criminal Justice. One serves as the deputy chief state's attorney for operations and one serves as the deputy chief state's attorney for personnel, finance, and administration.
The Criminal Justice Commission designates one deputy chief state's attorney who, in the absence or disqualification of the chief state’s attorney, exercises the powers and duties of the chief state’s attorney until such chief state’s attorney resumes his duties.
The Criminal Justice Commission also appoints, from candidates recommended by the appropriate state’s attorney, as many assistant state’s attorneys and deputy assistant state’s attorneys on a full-time or part-time basis for each judicial district as the criminal business of the court, in the opinion of the chief state’s attorney, may require. It also
appoints, from candidates recommended by the chief state’s attorney, as many assistant state’s attorneys and deputy assistant state's attorneys as are necessary, in the opinion of the chief state’s attorney, to assist the chief state’s attorney.
QUESTIONS FOR NOMINEE
1. What do you think is the most pressing criminal issue in Connecticut today? How is the Division of Criminal Justice dealing with it? What else needs to be done?
2. Many crimes stem from drug or alcohol dependency. When is rehabilitation, rather than incarceration, appropriate? Do you have any proposals for alternatives to prison that focus on rehabilitation? Have past alternative programs been successful?
3. Do you think a disproportionate number of minorities are prosecuted for crimes? Are sentences for minorities comparable to sentences for non-minorities? Is this a concern? What can be done?
4. Crimes such as identity theft and child pornography are now committed using the internet. Are there adequate resources and training to prosecute these crimes? What could be done to improve prosecution of internet-related crimes?
5. With the rise of DNA-testing, there have been some well-publicized accounts of people being wrongfully incarcerated. Should Connecticut implement safeguards against this possibility? What could be done?
6. The chief state’s attorney and deputy chief state’s attorneys must be attorneys who have been admitted to practice for at least three years. What other qualifications would you look for in a chief state’s attorney and deputy chief states attorney?
7. What is the commission’s procedure for selecting the state’s top prosecutor?
8. When hiring a person to become a prosecutor, what attributes would you look for, and what evidence would you need to demonstrate to you that a candidate has those attributes?
9. When deciding whether to reappoint a prosecutor, what factors would you look at and what kind of proof or evidence would you need to assure you that the candidate should be reappointed?
10. Recently, the legislature established a commission to study racial and ethnic disparity in the criminal justice system. Do you believe that a diversified prosecutorial staff would help to reduce system disparities? If so, what could the commission do to achieve diversity?
11. The commission is authorized to remove prosecutors from office. Under what circumstances should a prosecutor be removed? When should the commission take other disciplinary actions?
12. The chief state’s attorney may serve an unlimited number of five-year terms. What is gained by having appointments every five years? What would be the benefits, if any, of term limits?
13. How should the commission judge the chief state’s attorney’s performance?
14. Should prosecutors have complete discretion with respect to plea bargains or should there be guidelines?
15. Who does a prosecutor represent when he prosecutes a case?
16. How would you handle a complaint that a prosecutor had a substance abuse problem?
17. Should a prosecutor reveal to the court and jury that a key state witness has a history of racism if racial bias has been raised by the defense as an issue?
18. Should a prosecutor’s private noncriminal conduct or lifestyle ever be the basis for removal from office?
GC: ts