Time to Overhaul the Criminal Justice System?

This week I hosted a debate between two federal appellate judges on the question, “Does the American Criminal Justice System Need an Overhaul?” Judge Alex Kozinski says it does; Judge Jay Harvey Wilkinson says it does not. Watch it here and decide for yourself.


By way of background, Kozinski authored a much discussed article titled, “Criminal Law 2.0.” One problem he identifies (among many others), is that federal prosecutors too often shirk their legal and ethical obligations. The Department of Justice tried ignoring his criticism, but is now responding. Here is a snippet from an article in the National Law Journal (November 16 — sorry, pay wall for this one).

Justice Department Rebuts Judge Kozinski’s Criticism of Prosecutors


In a rare public war of words, top officials at the U.S. Department of Justice are pushing back against recent criticism about prosecutors’ ethics from Judge Alex Kozinski of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

The thrust of the DOJ argument is the familiar, “Trust us — we’ll do the right thing.” Kozinski rightly insists upon a “trust, but verify” posture as it relates to government promises.


Related items here & here.