Morning thoughts:

1. Prosecutors are not experts in criminal justice policy, they are experts in prosecuting and incarcerating people

They have also actively helped build the superstructure of mass incarceration (great article from @shonhopwood)

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=3566013

2. The end result of the endless lobbying - and it is lobbying - for mass incarceration has resulted in a 600% increase in incarceration...and that is just at the federal level

3. Prosecutors often argue that they don't "make" law but only "enforce" laws...That is not only untrue, but really disingenuous. Prosecutors associations are actively involved in EVERY stage from drafting of laws to testifying for or opposing laws once proposed.

4. The idea that the 'rule of law' is passive and an unquestioned good is dangerous. The rule of law was supposed to protect people from government & people from each other NOT to become justification for a one-way assembly line producing ceaseless mass incarceration

5. Prosecutors do a hard and often important job, and see nothing but the worst almost every single day but that does not make them neutral in the process of lawmaking or experts in policy...they are highly politically invested players and critical to incarceration growth

6. At the very least, their input should have to be data-driven and not anecdotal, way too often, really important reforms are destroyed by anecdotal musings masquerading as expertise by prosecutors associations

7. Survivors of crime should be listened to and their input included, but we should STOP assuming prosecutors speak for ALL survivors of crime.

If you don't know what I mean, you should read "Until We Reckon" daniellesered or read the polling of survivors by @SafeandJustUSA

I am not anti-prosecutor, I am very much opposed to the continued smooth operation of the tough on crime assembly line

At the very least, Prosecutors and Prosecutors associations should be honest about the role they play in the process of making laws

FIN