Attorneys speak to Legal Studies students about ethics in prosecuting and defending criminal cases

Center l to r: Municipal Prosecutor Cynthia Franklin and defense attorney Michael Logue, Gorton & Logue.

Anchorage Municipal Prosecutor Cynthia Franklin, and defense attorney Michael Logue, Gorton & Logue, spoke to students in Prof. Deb Periman's "Legal Ethics and the Role of the Legal Professional" class on February 13.

Discussion focused on the ethical duties of prosecutors and defense counsel under the Rules of Professional Conduct for attorneys and on the rules that govern the conduct of prosecutors specifically.  Ms. Franklin and Mr. Logue highlighted the working relationship between prosecutors and defense counsel, and responded to numerous questions from students.

Ms. Franklin has said that her view of prosecutorial ethics is reflected in a quote from Joseph Choate Hodges, a prominent and respected lawyer who practiced in New York at the turn of 20th century: "...while it is his [the prosecutor's] duty to bring to justice those whom he believed guilty, it is equally his duty to protect the innocent and to refrain from prosecuting those against whom no sufficient or reasonable proofs can be found."

L to r: Prof. Deb Periman, J.D.; Municipal Prosecutor Cynthia Franklin; defense counsel Michael Logue.