District Attorney

What You Do

District Attorneys, also known as prosecutors, or DAs, represent jurisdictions in criminal cases and ensure that justice is served. A District Attorney doesn’t just prosecute crimes – they are the linchpin in a city’s judicial system. Generally speaking, a DA is a lawyer who is elected or chosen by local government officials to represent the state government in criminal cases.

The DA is an officer of the court, and a critical link in the development of public policy related to criminal justice. The biggest responsibility of the DA is to ethically protect the needs of citizens and the community through the criminal justice system.

All but three states (NJ, AK, CT) elect State’s Attorneys General and or District Attorneys. State Attorneys General are elected statewide, and DAs or assistant DAs are elected in smaller districts that comprise the state. For example, in California there are 58 counties, and one DA for each, in addition to a statewide elected Attorney General.

“We need your voice because everyday people need to be represented by everyday people.”

Luisa Santos
School Board Member, Miami-Dade County, Florida

Responsibilities

District Attorneys have a wide scope of influence including deciding what cases to prosecute and which criminal charges to bring; the authority to investigate persons, grant immunity to witnesses, accused criminals, and plea bargain with defendants; and the ability to create or alter mandatory minimums. Some of the key duties include:

Issuing formal opinions to state agencies
Proposing legislation
Acting as public advocates in areas such as child support enforcement, consumer protections, antitrust and utility regulation
Enforcing federal and state environmental laws
Currently, DAs are facing issues related to reproductive freedom, environmental impacts including land use, and LGBTQIA+ equity issues.

Helpful Skills

Knowledge of the jurisdiction's law and state criminal policies
Strong verbal and written communication skills
Clean personal record and social media
Ability to stay calm and clear in chaos

Responsibilities

Helpful Skills

District Attorneys work full time, have staff to support them based on the size of the jurisdiction and the magnitude of the caseload, and are paid on average between $90,000- $300,000. They often manage staff from 5 members to hundreds, and budgets from less than $500,000 to multi millions. It is not unusual for DAs to maintain an aggressive social (political) and professional schedule requiring their presence at events and meetings on weekends and after hours.

The size and scope of campaigns for District Attorneys varies depending on the size of the constituency. Smaller constituencies – less than 250,000 voters – likely means a campaign costing less than 1,000,000. The size of the campaign and the revenue it needs for success is directly related to the number of voters that must be communicated with. The key here is history – look back at the last time the race was run with a competitive candidate and see what was spent and what was raised. Expect to campaign for at least 9-12 months in order to be well positioned to win.

Be 18 years of age at the start of the term.
Be a resident of the district that the individual is running to represent.
Be a US citizen.
Be free of felony convictions.
Mentally capable to serve (not to have been determined mentally incapacitated by a court of law)
All DA’s must have completed law school and passed the Bar in the jurisdiction where they seek to serve.

Generally, a candidate for DA must be a resident of the jurisdiction they seek to serve. The exact length of the residency requirement varies by locality. Candidates might also be mandated to meet certain age and voter registration requirements.

More Info