Should Prosecutors Be Sued by People They Frame?

Litigation Topics and News Relative to Accident Reconstruction
brian
Posts: 499
Joined: Tue Jul 14, 2009 10:52 am

Should Prosecutors Be Sued by People They Frame?

Post by brian »

If prosecutors fabricate evidence, can they be sued for it?" See NPR's "Morning Edition," Nina Totenberg from Nov 4, 2009:"Can Prosecutors Be Sued By People They Framed?"
In related story:Court worries about stifling prosecutors
From the Report on the Nov 2, 2009 by JESSE J. HOLLAND of the Associated Press apparently the Supreme Court on Wednesday worried that allowing people to sue prosecutors who fabricate evidence in order to win convictions might chill other prosecutions -even if those prosecutors are doing their jobs correctly and honestly (Prosecutors are immune from prosecution, see Qualified Immunity below). The justices apparently seemed frustrated at the thought that prosecutors would or could knowingly send an innocent person to prison and escape any legal repercussion simply by claiming that they were doing their job.
The case in front of the high court involves two former Pottawattamie County, Iowa, prosecutors. They are being sued by Curtis W. McGhee Jr., and Terry Harrington, who were wrongly convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison in 1978 for the death of retired police officer. Evidence showed the prosecutors failed to share evidence that pointed to another man. They denied that Gates was even a suspect.
A suit was filed against the former prosecutors saying that the prosecutors had them arrested without probable cause, coerced and coached witnesses, fabricated evidence against them and concealed evidence that could have cleared them. They claimed that they were targeted because they are black.
"We're concerned about the chilling effect on prosecutors," Chief Justice John Roberts said. For example, "this will discourage the prosecutors from becoming involved in the witness questioning process, at least not before the police are well on the way. And that is a very negative incentive, I would think," Justice Stephen Breyer said.
The court will release its decision next year. Access the U.S. Supreme Court oral argument in the case:Pottawattamie County v. McGhee, No. 08-1065.
See the Full Story
For more appellate litigation News, see How Appealing "The Web's first blog devoted to appellate litigation". By Howard J. Bashman.
Qualified immunity shields government officials from liability for the violation of an individual's federal constitutional rights. This grant of immunity is available to state or federal employees performing discretionary functions where their actions, even if later found to be unlawful, did not violate "clearly established law."
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