Role of the Prosecutor: United Nations and the European Perspective (From Role of the Prosecutor -- Report of the International Criminal Justice Seminar held at the London School of Economics and Political Science, January 1987, P 80-89, 1988, J.E. Hall Williams, ed. -- See NCJ-118587)

• NCJ Number: 118593
• Author(s): M Joutsen
• Date Published: 1988
• Length: 10 pages
• Sale Source: Gower Publishing Co
• Publication Type: Survey (Cross-Cultural)
• Language: English
• Country: United Kingdom

Annotation

The work of the United Nations and the Helsinki Institute relating to prosecution and as an aid to the policy-maker, the practitioner, and the researcher is described.

Abstract

Among questions examined are whether models developed in one country can be used in another, and external and internal mechanisms for controlling the quality of prosecution are discussed. Two external controls cited are public control through the mass media, and private control through the actio popularis -- a procedure by which one can complain through the legal system and the courts about the failure to safeguard the interests of injured parties in criminal offenses. Internal control revolves primarily around the issue of guidelines, and the pros and cons of policy guidelines are listed. Cross national studies on prosecutorial decisionmaking and on the role of the victim are described, and a discussion is conducted on whether criminal justice systems are each so unique and owe so much to legal, social, economic, and cultural background that they inhibit international cooperation in crime prevention and control.