Disciplinary Sanctions Against Prosecutors for Brady Violations

The integrity of our criminal justice system is of vital importance to all of us. The presentation of false evidence by prosecutors or their concealment of exculpatory evidence clearly undermines this integrity. Moreover, over the last eight years a body of legal and ethical rules has developed that imposes on prosecutors a duty to reveal exculpatory evidence and to prohibit the presentation of false evidence. However, the development of these rules has given rise to a second question: To what extent have these rules been applied to deter prosecutors from engaging in such conduct? In this Article Professor Rosen considers this question, focusing on the ethical rules that require prosecutors to reveal exculpatory evidence and prohibit them from presenting false evidence. To determine the extent to which the rules have been applied, Professor Rosen surveyed all available printed sources. In addition, he surveyed the lawyer disciplinary bodies in each of the fifty states and the District of Columbia. The research indicates that disciplinary charges have been brought infrequently under the applicable rules and that meaningful sanctions have been applied only rarely. Professor Rosen concludes with three commendations intended to alleviate this problem.