ABSTRACT
Prosecutors are highly influential in determining the outcomes of cases involving juvenile offenders. In a famous speech to U.S. attorneys about ethics in prosecuting, former Attorney General Robert Jackson, who later became a Supreme Court justice, stated on April 1, 1940, that “[t]he prosecutor has more control over life, liberty, and reputation than any other person in America. His discretion is tremendous.” This is as true today, if not more so, as it was in the middle of the last century. As one prosecutor has asserted: “Prosecution in the juvenile justice system is a means to an end. How we as a society will live 10 to 15 years from now depends on how well we do with these kids.”
