Transforming the Progressive Prosecutor Movement

Understanding Plea Bargaining in a New Progressive DA’s Office: How Line Prosecutors Understand and Implement Progressive Goals Through Plea Decisions

“…ADAs in this study did not mention any strategies that would share or transfer some of their power or resources to the defense, an omission that is consistent with the broader Progressive Prosecution movement's silence on this issue. Progressive prosecutors have been called upon to lobby for a stronger indigent defense system (Covert, 2021)-a stronger system may have funding and staff available to improve the amount of information public defenders are able to obtain and share about their clients, who are sometimes difficult to contact due to unstable housing and access to phone and email services. Defense attorneys could also be granted more regular access to and time with prosecutors for the purpose of sharing information and discussing cases.…”

“…Several strategies have been identified by which prosecutors can seek to reduce racial disparities. Such strategies include training staff on implicit bias and racial disparities in the criminal justice system, collecting data on office outcomes to identify racial disparities in charging and sentencing, hiring more racial minorities in line prosecutor and supervisory positions, declining to call police witnesses who have a history of racial bias, declining to pursue the historically discriminatory death penalty, and promoting diversion and non-prosecution in minor cases (Covert, 2021;Davis, 2019;Pickerell, 2020aPickerell, , 2020bSklansky, 2017). Of these strategies, ADAs in the current study mentioned three; this is not to say that the office was not engaging in more of these strategies at the time, just that only three were mentioned in interviews with ADAs about plea bargaining.…”

“…Critics have also discussed the potential difficulties progressive prosecutors may face in increasing leniency in case outcomes when other court and contextual factors remain unchanged (Covert, 2021; Fryer, 2020; McWithey, 2020; Romero, 2020). In particular, defense attorneys possess information about their clients that could enable prosecutors to arrive at more lenient plea outcomes, which prosecutors cannot access on their own (Bibas, 2011; Covert, 2021).…”

“…Critics have also discussed the potential difficulties progressive prosecutors may face in increasing leniency in case outcomes when other court and contextual factors remain unchanged (Covert, 2021; Fryer, 2020; McWithey, 2020; Romero, 2020). In particular, defense attorneys possess information about their clients that could enable prosecutors to arrive at more lenient plea outcomes, which prosecutors cannot access on their own (Bibas, 2011; Covert, 2021). Such information includes statutory mitigating factors that can situate an individual in a more lenient range for sentencing and contextual factors that can make possible the types of rehabilitative and restorative strategies that progressive prosecutors espouse (Covert, 2021; Marguilies & Lang, 2019).…”

“…In particular, defense attorneys possess information about their clients that could enable prosecutors to arrive at more lenient plea outcomes, which prosecutors cannot access on their own (Bibas, 2011; Covert, 2021). Such information includes statutory mitigating factors that can situate an individual in a more lenient range for sentencing and contextual factors that can make possible the types of rehabilitative and restorative strategies that progressive prosecutors espouse (Covert, 2021; Marguilies & Lang, 2019). Thus far, progressive prosecutors have been largely silent on how they will bridge the gap to the people who are actually charged with criminal offenses that will allow them to implement leniency goals.…”