HUFFINGTON
08.04.13
AP PHOTO/PATRICK SEMANSKY
THE UNTOUCHABLES
dismissed Thompson’s lawsuit
against Orleans Parish and the office of former District Attorney
Harry Connick (father of the debonair crooner). The court’s decision
in Connick v. Thompson added yet
another layer of protection for aggressive prosecutors, in this instance by making it more difficult
to sue the governments that employ them. It was just the latest in a
series of Supreme Court decisions
going back to the 1970s that have
insulated prosecutors from any real
consequences of their actions.
Prosecutors and their advocates
say complete and absolute immunity from civil liability is critical
to the performance of their jobs.
They argue that self-regulation
and professional sanctions from
state bar associations are sufficient to deter misconduct. Yet
there’s little evidence that state
bar associations are doing anything to police prosecutors, and
numerous studies have shown that
those who misbehave are rarely if
ever professionally disciplined.
And in a culture where racking
up convictions tends to win prosecutors promotions, elevation to
higher office and high-paying gigs
with white-shoe law firms, civil
liberties activists and advocates
for criminal justice reform worry
there’s no countervailing force to
hold overzealous prosecutors to
their ethical obligations.
John
Thompson
speaks to
reporters in
New Orleans
after the
Supreme
Court
overturned a
$14 million
judgment,
accusing
prosecutors
of witholding
evidence
in order to
help convict
Thompson of
murder.