The pressures that come with working in criminal law in our adversarial justice system can lead to the temptation to win the case at all costs. When faced with this pressure in your real-life work as a paralegal, it will be critical that you remember and abide by ethics rules so you can maintain a balance between zealous advocacy and fairness and protection for the innocent. For this assignment, you will review a news story in which a prosecutor hid evidence in a case. You will then discuss the story with your classmates and cite which rules were broken.Research a news story or case online wherein a prosecutor violated ethical rules in a criminal case. (There are many high-profile instances out there.)Include a link to your case or news story discussing the case.In a discussion post, answer the following questions:What ethics rules were violated?What resulted from the lapse in ethical judgment?What are the ethical requirements of a prosecutor in a criminal trial?What are the requirements of a paralegal who works for a prosecutor?What would you have done if you worked in that office and became aware of the problems that created the ethical dilemma?What loyalties are important to the paralegal when working in the criminal law office?What ethical expectations must a paralegal keep in mind when working for a defense attorney? A prosecutor? A judge?Beyond the specific standards and rules of ethics that govern prosecutors and defense attorneys, what additional significant rules of ethics apply to paralegals?
