How to get a west coast prosecution job?

April 10, 2008 12:36 PM

Asking for a friend: I want to be a prosecutor. Badly. It doesn't have to be all glamor and glory, I just want to get into court. I am looking at the Northern CA, OR and WA areas. Does anyone have any inside information on areas that are hiring/firing?

I should add some personal details. I have excellent work experience, as I am putting myself through law school at night while working in law enforcement as a paralegal. I am attending a school in SoCal that is lower tier 1. Good grades, secondary journal, and a summer internship at the local DA.

I'm mining my local contacts, but wanted to see if MeFi had any insight. As a general rule, I've found that lawyers are usually 1) risk-averse and 2) creatures of habit. When hiring, they go with the local schools that everyone else went to, or the big name schools that everyone knows. How do I get the local DA to open its doors?

posted by autojack to work & money (7 comments total)

I-am-not-a-lawyer-but-a-lot-of-my-friends-are:

It seems like it's much easier to get entry-level ADA jobs in bigger cities, as they tend to burn out faster and move on, so you'd probably have more luck in San Francisco, Seattle, or Portland than smaller towns.
posted by Oktober at 12:52 PM on April 10 [1 favorite]

I'm a lawyer and a good friend is a prosecutor in Baltimore--Oktober has it right, you want to go to the big city where you will prosecute low level drug crimes for 2 years before moving up. I'd also suggest clerking for a judge with a big criminal docket.

Also, write your target DA's now and ask for an informational interview. Target those who have gone to your school--talk to a career counselor. Ask a judge on the faculty about who to talk to.
posted by Ironmouth at 1:20 PM on April 10

Orange County DA was hiring when I checked about one month ago, but they don't seem to be currently. Orange County PD is currently hiring, and they have been for as long as I can remember. In case you don't know, the site is http://agency.governmentjobs.com (sorry, I don't know how to link). Also, I have a friend at the Riverside County DA who says that they are always hiring because of low employee rention. From what I hear, Riverside County DAs have a tendency to always prosecute, never settle, and take everything to trial. Also, I'm not sure what year you are in, but your school may have an externship program with the local DA (I know that Loyola does). Hopefully this helps a little.
posted by metawabbit at 1:36 PM on April 10

If you just want to get into court, consider the public defender. They're nearly always hiring and get you into court right away.
posted by lockestockbarrel at 1:46 PM on April 10

here in tx, the attorney general's office frequently has job openings for attorney I positions (straight outta law school). lots of court time there, from what i hear.
posted by ncc1701d at 2:01 PM on April 10

As per metawabbit, I have a friend recently hired by the Orange County DA, but I'm not sure about current availability.
posted by wuzandfuzz at 9:50 PM on April 10

Clerk at the ADA/ASA office, and if they like you, they will recruit you.
posted by gjc at 7:07 PM on April 11