The Power of Prosecutors
We loathe mass incarceration. We loathe police brutality. But most of us have absolutely no idea how to address the critical flaws in our justice system. What this brilliant short film called “Prosecutorial Accountability” breaks down is the fact that no single individual has more power and more influence in the criminal justice system than […]
We loathe mass incarceration. We loathe police brutality. But most of us have absolutely no idea how to address the critical flaws in our justice system.
What this brilliant short film called “Prosecutorial Accountability” breaks down is the fact that no single individual has more power and more influence in the criminal justice system than the district attorney.
Every year in this country, millions upon millions of cases go through their offices. They make sweeping decisions on who to prosecute and who to protect.
“Prosecutors have more power than most us realize,” says the film’s narrator, Bryonn Bain. “Prosecutors alone decide whether or not to charge a crime. They get to decide who is prosecuted — and who gets a pass.”
Sadly, they don’t look or think or feel like the majority of Americans. They are 95 percent white, 81 percent male, and overwhelmingly conservative. We must do better.