ABSTRACT
The Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate’s seminar on The Role of the Prosecutor in Terrorist Cases held in June 2012 focused on the role of the prosecutor from both a strategic and operational perspective. Understanding that criminal justice agencies generally and prosecutors specifically are well-suited to handling general criminal matters, prosecutors have had a difficult time successfully bringing terrorist cases to court for several reasons. Prosecution in the International Criminal Court is only an option when a national domestic court is unwilling or unable to prosecute or when the United Nation’s Security Council or states refer cases to them. The International Criminal Court is also limited in jurisdiction to only those states who have signed and ratified the Rome Statute. International law therefore limits a nation’s jurisdiction over persons or acts within another country. An exception to this rule is prescriptive jurisdiction, whereby a nation can apply its substantive laws to the acts and persons within another state.
