What is a Prosecutor?
In New York, a prosecutor is a attorney, such as a district attorney, who
starts legal proceedings to enforce criminal laws against an accused individual
or organization in criminal or supreme court with the goal of securing
a conviction, restitution, and/or other criminal penalties.
A prosecutor is or can bethought of as...
- An attorney, licensed in New York
- A plaintiff
- A District Attorney (title of an official elected to prosecute)
- An Assistant District Attorney
- On the side of "justice"
A prosecutor is not
- The judge
- A defense lawyer / defense attorney / legal aid, etc
- Primarily concerned with protecting the person who got arrested
- Privately hired by the person or corporation who complained to the police
Under New York Criminal Procedure Law § 1.20:
"Prosecutor" means a district attorney or any other public servant
who represents the people in a criminal action. "District attorney"
means a district attorney, an assistant district attorney, or a special
district attorney, and, where appropriate, the attorney general, an assistant
attorney general, a deputy attorney general or a special deputy attorney general.