New Kid on the Block

I've added to the list of Other Blogs to Read a comparatively new blog:  The Open File: A Website about Prosecutorial Misconduct & Accountability.  Here's how they (whoever exactly "they" might be) describe themselves.

This website is the culmination of the work of an informal collection of lawyers, law professors, law students and policy advocates who are concerned about prosecutorial misconduct.

We believe that prosecutors generally are honest and ethical. We also believe that too often, prosecutors – whose job it is to enforce the law – violate the laws and Constitution of the United States as well as the ethical rules of the legal profession. And too often this misconduct goes unaddressed. As the 2011 U.S. Supreme Court decision Connick v. Thompson demonstrates, even when judges issue decisions finding egregious, intentional misconduct, prosecutors are rarely held to account.

The Connick decision inspired us to examine the nature of prosecutorial misconduct, the systems that incentivize such behavior, and the processes and institutions which might hold prosecutors accountable when misconduct occurs. We hope that by drawing attention to these issues, we will spark a dialogue that will promote greater respect for the law and for the legal profession.