America's Criminal Defense Group - Our Legal Blog

A recent article in the LA Times http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-quota18apr18,0,668020.story?page=1, reported the use of a “quota system” in the federal prosecuting attorney’s office. Some current and former prosecuting attorneys acknowledged that they were directed to prosecute many cases that normally would not have been prosecuted. And the result for not following directions – Repercussions like unwanted job transfers, as well as a dock in their role as a prosecutor.  What these sources revealed is not only appalling, but an outright unjust and unethical way of practicing.

Apparently, attorneys in the Los Angeles US Attorney’s Office were given “encouragement” through the use of “performance goals,” by two of their bosses. Meet the goal, and not only do you not suffer any repercussions, but it may also include a financial incentive – a Bonus!  Who ever heard of someone getting a bonus for the amount of cases they prosecute?

This definitely raises a lot of questions regarding what the true motives are behind some criminal prosecutions. It blurs the line between justice for possible victims of crimes, by giving a prosecutor a financial incentive to prosecute a crime. It is no longer about doing justice, but doing whatever needs to be done to get paid, and advance your career.  And sometimes, this may mean a person who has not done anything wrong (which the evidence most likely shows), will continue to be prosecuted.  It is not about justice at that point, but a bonus check for the prosecutor.

Of course, we can’t use this to suspect every prosecutor of using ulterior motives when prosecuting a case. However, with quota systems like this in place, it definitely raises questions about what criminal justice is all about, and increases the need for more people to hire aggressive attorneys, like those at America’s Criminal Defense Group.

Higher education is not supposed to literally mean “high”-er education. Although, apparently for many SDSU students, they took that term and used its street meaning to great lengths on campus. According to several news reports, the Sand Diego DAs office, the Federal DEA has completed an extensive undercover drug operation on the campus of San Diego State University. According to reports, over 70 students, including fraternity leaders, were involved in regular drug sales on campus. It is not yet publicly known to what extent the individuals on campus were involved, but there are indicators that show a great deal of student involvement in the daily sales. Reports showed images of text messages sent from alleged sellers to the “faithful customers.”

Now, if you are not yet aware, the possibility that this “operation” was run by students is far fetched. Chances are a local drug dealer saw an opportunity to find plenty of small time sellers (eager to make a quick buck) who could easily establish some rapport with a plethora of buyers. This most likely produced a steady flow of sales to the real dealers – those that were not students at SDSU.

One thing that all those involved in this operation should know – if you’re a college student, you probably had a lot going for you. A drug dealing charge on your record could easily tarnish your record for life. The people in this whole deal who should be the most concerned, however, are the real drug dealers who were pushing their product on to the students at SDSU. With your once loyal sellers being students, and having so much to lose – it’s just a matter of time until they all start turning states evidence against you. Those once loyal sellers will be the same individuals testifying against the dealers at their criminal trial.  One thing is sure – all of those involved in the drug operation will need to hire outsanding criminal defense attorneys. The attorneys at America’s Criminal Defense Group have handled hundreds of drug cases – they know that each defendant will need a different type of representation. These defendants will need the type of attorneys at America’s Criminal Defense Group who just got a client a great outcome after he was caught with over 100lbs of marijuana in the bed of his truck!