UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. RAY FOSTER - Articles

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. RAY FOSTER

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Dec 17, 2019

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1:

ON BRIEF: Paul L. Nelson, OFFICE OF THE FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER, Grand Rapids, Michigan, for Appellant. Terra L. Bay, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Chattanooga, Tennessee, for Appellee.

Judge(s): SUTTON, NALBANDIAN, and READLER, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Chattanooga

CHAD A. READLER, Circuit Judge. At its core, the job of a prosecutor is “[to] do justice.” Confirmation Hearing on the Nomination of Hon. Sonia Sotomayor, to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Before the S. Comm. on the Judiciary, 111th Cong. 359 (2009) (quoting famed prosecutor Hamilton Burger from the television show Perry Mason). That is no small task. In honoring the trust placed upon them as public officials,prosecutors pursue justice by prosecuting on the public’s behalf those accused of violating our criminal laws. As they pursue those legal proceedings, prosecutors must exercise fairly their tremendous discretion and weighty judgment. And they must act with appropriate respect for prosecutorial norms, court rules, and constitutional limitations.

We agree with the district court in all respects. The prosecution was undoubtedly careless. But there is no evidence of intentional misconduct part and parcel of a scheme to deprive Foster of his double jeopardy rights. Accordingly, we AFFIRM the judgment of the district court.

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