4/25/05—Boston College Law School Professor Michael Cassidy’s new casebook Prosecutorial Ethics has just been released by West Publishing Company.

Prosecutorial Ethics is ideally suited for use in either a criminal clinical course or in an advanced professional responsibility seminar exploring the unique ethical responsibilities of a government lawyer in criminal cases. Substantial attention is paid to discerning the proper “role” of the prosecutor, and how the prosecutor has ethical responsibilities as a minister of justice beyond those of a traditional advocate. The text discusses constraints on prosecutorial discretion (ethical and constitutional) at each stage of the criminal justice process, from investigation through charging and sentencing. Topics include contacting and interviewing witnesses, grand jury practice, selection of charges, pre-trial discovery, plea bargaining, jury selection, trial conduct, and publicity.

Professor Cassidy teaches and writes in the areas of Criminal Law, Evidence, and Professional Responsibility. An expert in prosecutorial ethics, he frequently provides training to public sector attorneys on their responsibilities under the Rules of Professional Conduct.

During his extensive career as a government lawyer, Professor Cassidy prosecuted hundreds of serious felony cases at both the trial and appellate levels, including briefing and arguing several high-profile criminal matters before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

Among his many professional and community activities, Professor Cassidy has served as a member of the Governor's Commission on Corrections Reform, as a member of the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission, as Editor-in-Chief of the Massachusetts Law Review, and as a hearing officer for the Board of Bar Overseers.

Professor Cassidy received his B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Notre Dame, and his J.D. degree, magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School. He served as law clerk to the Honorable Edward F. Hennessey, Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

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