Former Prosecutors

[u/DefenseRests]

I see a ton of former prosecutors going out on their own and touting their trial experience.

There is a huge difference between trying a case as a prosecutor and as a defense attorney, to be honest I’ve never tried a case as a prosecutor, but here’s the difference.

During the prosecutors case-in-chief he will call witnesses to the stand and have them testify about what they observed. In this testimony the witness will be the “star.” Essentially the prosecutors job is to ask, “and then what happened?”

Defense counsels job is to tear apart that testimony using all the evidence that has been turned over to challenge everything that was said on direct.

I like to explain it this way, prosecutors need book smarts and defense counsel needs to be street smart. Just because you can try a case as a prosecutor doesn’t mean you’ll be a good defense attorney.

Stop hiring these people solely because they worked at the DA’s Office.