Thoughts on the Ethical Culture of a Prosecutor's Office

Authors

Patrick J. Fitzgerald

Abstract

I am truly honored to be asked to speak at this event, particularly an event held in honor of Norm Maleng. I want to talk about maintaining an ethical culture in a prosecutor’s office and give you a perspective on the things that have struck me after being an Assistant U.S. Attorney for about thirteen years—approaching seven years this fall as a U.S. Attorney, so about twenty years as a prosecutor. Some of the things I will say are obvious but worth repeating because we have to bear them in mind. Some are slightly subtle but worth pointing out. I want to talk about prosecutorial ethics in general, and also explain the importance of an ethical culture in a prosecutor’s office and discuss why we focus on the culture rather than the individuals. It is not a topic we discuss often, which is remarkable if you consider the impact of what goes on in prosecutor’s offices.

First Page

35

Recommended Citation

Patrick J. Fitzgerald, Tribute, Thoughts on the Ethical Culture of a Prosecutor's Office, 84 Wash. L. Rev. 35 (2009).
Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/wlr/vol84/iss1/3