Examining the Impact of Discovery Policies on Prosecutorial Misconduct

• In Event: Wrongful Convictions: Prosecutors, Public Attitudes, and Jailhouse Lawyers

Abstract

Prosecutorial misconduct is one if the leading causes of wrongful convictions in the United States (Innocence Project, n.d.). Open-file discovery policies, in which prosecutors broadly share evidence with the defense, are one of the leading reforms to address this issue. A U.S. Supreme Court decision however, ruled that prosecutors do not have to turn over certain types of evidence in the context of guilty plea negotiations (U.S. v. Ruiz, 2002). This study sought to investigate the impact of these discovery policies (Open file instruction (OFI) and Supreme Court instruction (SCI)) on prosecutor behavior. Participants, all of whom played the role of prosecutor, were randomly assigned to one of four conditions (no instruction, only OFI, only SCI, and both OFI and SCI) and had to assemble a case against a defendant. In assembling the case, participants had the opportunity to engage in misconduct by withholding four potentially exculpatory items from the defense (i.e., prosecutorial misconduct). Although data collection is ongoing, both manipulations significantly affected the amount of discovery turned over, but only SCI influenced prosecutorial misconduct. This presentation will also include findings on the participants’ decision to go to trial or offer a plea deal.

Authors

• Samantha Luna, George Mason University

• Skye Woestehoff, George Mason University

• Allison D. Redlich, George Mason University