About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

29 Stetson L. Rev. 181 (1999-2000)
The State v. the Self-Represented: A Florida Prosecutor's Concerns when Litigating against a Pro Se Defendant in a Criminal Trial

handle is hein.journals/stet29 and id is 195 raw text is: ESSAYS THE STATE V. THE SELF-REPRESENTED: A FLORIDA PROSECUTOR'S CONCERNS WHEN LITIGATING AGAINST A PRO SE DEFENDANT IN A CRIMINAL TRIAL* Christopher G. Frey** A prosecutor's mission, as with all litigators, is to competently represent his or her client.' In the criminal justice system, the prosecutor's client is the government, whether the government involved is the federal government or a state government.2 The apex of the prosecutor's duty is the trial.' At trial, the prosecutor has the opportunity to sharpen and utilize his or her litigation skills and bring the client's case to a successful conclusion. In crimi- nal matters, the intended result is a verdict of guilt, resulting in the conviction of the accused. Litigating before a jury can be both challenging and rewarding for a prosecutor. Many prosecutors wel- © Christopher G. Frey, 1999. All rights reserved. The Author is a 1989 graduate of Stetson University College of Law. From May 1989 until January 1995, Mr. Frey served as a state prosecutor with the Office of the State Attorney for the Sixth Judicial Circuit in and for Pinellas County, Florida. Mr. Frey currently practices criminal defense in Clearwater, Florida. 1. See R. REGULATING FLA. BAR Rules 4-1.1, 4-1.3 (1998). 2. In any given case, there may be one or more alleged victims of criminal con- duct. Within the criminal justice system, however, the government is technically the aggrieved party and acts as the agent of the victim for purposes of criminal prosecu- tions. Therefore, the style of a criminal case is captioned, for example, State of Florida v. Defendant. Accordingly, the government retains sole discretion and power to proceed with a criminal prosecution, regardless of the wishes of the so-called victim-witness. See State v. Cain, 381 So. 2d 1361, 1367 n.8 (Fla. 1980); see also FLA. STAT. § 27.02 (1997). This ability enables the government to proceed in a case where prosecution is warranted, although the victim is reluctant to go forward. This power also enables the government to refuse to proceed where prosecution is not warranted, although the alleged victim may be adamant about prosecuting the offense. Theoretically, frivolous or unwarranted charges may thus be avoided. 3. The practical reality is that a low percentage of prosecuted cases actually pro- ceed to trial. All references in this essay to trials refer to jury trials, although it is possible to proceed to trial before a judge. See FLA. R. CRIM. P. 3.260.

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most