The Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys (MAPA) has released a statement signaling their disapproval for House Bill 301, which would allow the governor to appoint a special prosecutor or the City of St. Louis under special circumstances.
MAPA wrote in their statement that "Missouri's prosecutors are elected by the people they serve, as Missouri law has long recognized that local control provides the best form of government." They add that Missouri already has protocol in place to remove prosecutors should their performance in office prove to be unfavorable.
Amy Fite, General Counsel for Missouri Office Prosecutor Services and former Christian County Prosecutor, talked more about the issue with KMOX on Total Information AM. Listen to her interview here:
Read MAPA's full statement below or find it here:
"Prosecutors play a unique and vital role in the criminal justice system. A prosecutor must protect public safety by vigorously prosecuting those who violate the law while also protecting the innocent from wrongful charges. The United States Supreme Court and the national standards for prosecutors both recognize the importance of a prosecutor's twin duties to prosecute the guilty and protect the innocent.
Missouri's prosecutors are elected by the people they serve, as Missouri law has long recognized that local control provides the best form of government.
To honor the trust citizens place in the prosecutors they elect for their respective jurisdictions, it is incumbent upon all prosecutors to do justice and protect the safety of the citizens of their jurisdictions. While the Association does not take sides on any issues plaguing the City of St. Louis, we are concerned for the citizens of the City and their right to justice and public safety.
Where a prosecutor has failed to live up to the standards demanded by the law and the community the prosecutor serves, Missouri law already provides two avenues to remove that prosecutor.
First, should the citizens of a jurisdiction feel an elected prosecutor is failing to fulfill his or her duty in providing justice and public safety, those citizens may file a petition to remove that prosecutor pursuant to Sections 106.220-106.290 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri.
Second, the Missouri Attorney General has authority to remove a prosecutor on the same grounds through an action called quo warranto. And, of course, a prosecutor who can no longer adequately perform the functions of his or her office should resign.
Simply put, when any prosecutor fails to live up to the demanding standards to be an effective minister of justice, Missouri law already enables the public that elected that prosecutor to remove the prosecutor. For that reason, proposals to vest the Attorney General or a special prosecutor with new or concurrent jurisdiction alongside any elected prosecutor are unnecessary and counterproductive. House Bill 301 would actually leave an offending prosecutor in place to prosecute—or, at their sole discretion, refuse to prosecute—the vast majority of cases in a jurisdiction. The Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys opposes House Bill 301 and any other measure that would fundamentally change the system, which has served the citizens of Missouri well since 1875, that holds local prosecutors accountable to the public they serve.
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