At 01:24 PM 2/15/96 -0600, Sten Drescher wrote:

tcmay@got.net (Timothy C. May) said:

TCM> There are two further points which need clearing up:

TCM> 1. Private citizens (the atheist in this case) do not file TCM> criminal charges. They may swear out a complaint ("I witnessed TCM> John Doe carrying a Bible"), but they do not file criminal TCM> charges.

OK, how about `press charges`? And please, don't try telling me that private citizen's don't `press charges`, because one of the well reported problems in fighting domestic violence has been the battered spouse (almost always the wife) refusing to press charges.

The "pressing charges" question is essentially about evidence. At certain stages in a criminal proceeding, the prosecution must produce enough evidence of the right kind (e.g., sworn testimony which reaches the level of probable cause, for instance) in order for the proceedings to continue. There are smaller hurdles pretrial (in order to create the prosecution itself, and to hold the defendant while waiting for trial) and a bigger hurdle at trial. The sworn testimony of a victim can be strong evidence to help a prosecutor get over those hurdles. If there is no other evidence, the prosecution may fail. But prosecutors and investigators who see the reluctant victim problem coming can sometimes work around it by collecting other evidence which can be used instead of the victim's testimony. The victim can also be subpoenaed to testify even if they don't want to. (Of course, their testimony may not be especially helpful under those circumstances.) Thus, no, the victim does not have veto power over a prosecution, except in those circumstances where they're fortuitously in possession or control of the evidence the prosecution needs to prove its case. And that's a matter of luck and circumstance, not law.

TCM> No prosecutor can be "forced" to prosecute, absent approval by a TCM> grand jury. (And if a prosecutor doesn't want to indict a ham TCM> sandwich, it won't be indicted.)

OK, how about this. J Random Atheist, Jr, comes across the Bible on the 'net. J Random Atheist, Sr, finds out, and is appalled, and swears out a complaint. The AUSA refuses to investigate. Could J Random Atheist, Sr, file a lawsuit against the AUSA because he is being denied equal treatment under the law?

No. J Random Atheist has no right to expect prosecutors to share his priorities re enforcement of the laws. His remedy is to elect people with different prosecutorial priorities. -- "The anchored mind screwed into me by the psycho- | Greg Broiles lubricious thrust of heaven is the one that thinks | gbroiles@netbox.com every temptation, every desire, every inhibition." | -- Antonin Artaud |