How to be a Prosecution/PD Gunner? Forum

[Sean Bateman]

Hey all, this is a great thread...i am joining a little late but here's whats what. I am a 2L at a T2, top third of the class, interned 1L summer with a felony judge. I am aiming to be a ASA (Same as ADA in my state) after graduation. Taking all the requisite courses: state crim, evidence, crim pro, etc. We also have a prosecution clinic that I am going to participate in 3L.
For this coming 2L summer, I have thus sent out applications to 4 offices and shooting for at least 2 more.
So far I have one ding and one offer. The offer is in an awesome part of the state where I wouldn't have to think twice about living. I'd love to take it, but of course these things are all unpaid and I don't even have anywhere to stay near this particular office. I am thinking of getting a sublease there and taking a part time job for money but that's easier said than done.
Those of you who have offers, or when you do get offers...how do you solve the problem of funding an unpaid internship? I'd hate to have to turn down this wonderful offer on account of not having the funds.

[Borhas]

Hey all, this is a great thread...i am joining a little late but here's whats what. I am a 2L at a T2, top third of the class, interned 1L summer with a felony judge. I am aiming to be a ASA (Same as ADA in my state) after graduation. Taking all the requisite courses: state crim, evidence, crim pro, etc. We also have a prosecution clinic that I am going to participate in 3L.
For this coming 2L summer, I have thus sent out applications to 4 offices and shooting for at least 2 more.
So far I have one ding and one offer. The offer is in an awesome part of the state where I wouldn't have to think twice about living. I'd love to take it, but of course these things are all unpaid and I don't even have anywhere to stay near this particular office. I am thinking of getting a sublease there and taking a part time job for money but that's easier said than done.
Those of you who have offers, or when you do get offers...how do you solve the problem of funding an unpaid internship? I'd hate to have to turn down this wonderful offer on account of not having the funds.

take a class at a nearby law school, borrow more money

[A'nold]

Congrats. How far away are you?

Edit: And this once again brings up my "when do we mass mail" question........when do we mass mail?

I'm a 3L in Atlanta. Airfare is around $200 round trip, plus hotel. I applied online at the end of September and this is first time I have heard back.

Cool.

[A'nold]

Hey all, this is a great thread...i am joining a little late but here's whats what. I am a 2L at a T2, top third of the class, interned 1L summer with a felony judge. I am aiming to be a ASA (Same as ADA in my state) after graduation. Taking all the requisite courses: state crim, evidence, crim pro, etc. We also have a prosecution clinic that I am going to participate in 3L.
For this coming 2L summer, I have thus sent out applications to 4 offices and shooting for at least 2 more.
So far I have one ding and one offer. The offer is in an awesome part of the state where I wouldn't have to think twice about living. I'd love to take it, but of course these things are all unpaid and I don't even have anywhere to stay near this particular office. I am thinking of getting a sublease there and taking a part time job for money but that's easier said than done.
Those of you who have offers, or when you do get offers...how do you solve the problem of funding an unpaid internship? I'd hate to have to turn down this wonderful offer on account of not having the funds.

Make it an externship and take out loans accordingly.

[Sean Bateman]

[/quote]
Make it an externship and take out loans accordingly.[/quote]


Wish I could...already doing an externship 3L year; plus you need a certain class as a pre-req for my school's externship that I wont have until fall 3L. There also isn't a law school anywhere in this region that I know of so that's out of the question...although you may be on to something; take some bullshit classes at the community college for financial aide. not the worst idea in the world if it'll work.

On another note,
do you think it is better to
a) intern at a big urban office (ie Miami)
or b) a smaller office in a county you know you'd like to work in.

I don't have any interest in a big urban area but someone advised me "if you've worked in Miami, you can pretty much work anywhere"

[leobowski]

On another note,
do you think it is better to
a) intern at a big urban office (ie Miami)
or b) a smaller office in a county you know you'd like to work in.

I don't have any interest in a big urban area but someone advised me "if you've worked in Miami, you can pretty much work anywhere"

Neither. Work in an office that regularly hires its 2L interns as attorneys.

[A'nold]

I don't think you can take out loans for CC after you have a bachelors degree.

[gobucks101]

A'nold,

A follow up to your question before about when to apply for Miami. I was googling online the recruiting coordinator for info and came across the Ohio Northern Law School's Miami SA information page and their due date for resume collection was August 24th.

[A'nold]

A'nold,

A follow up to your question before about when to apply for Miami. I was googling online the recruiting coordinator for info and came across the Ohio Northern Law School's Miami SA information page and their due date for resume collection was August 24th.

Right now I'm wondering when to apply anywhere. When would you guys start sending out stuff to all the counties/cities in your state?

[seatown12]

On another note,
do you think it is better to
a) intern at a big urban office (ie Miami)
or b) a smaller office in a county you know you'd like to work in.

I don't have any interest in a big urban area but someone advised me "if you've worked in Miami, you can pretty much work anywhere"

Work in the office that will give you the most substantive responsibilities. Better to work in some off-brand office doing trials and stuff than doing research and filing in a prestigious office.

[seatown12]

A'nold,

A follow up to your question before about when to apply for Miami. I was googling online the recruiting coordinator for info and came across the Ohio Northern Law School's Miami SA information page and their due date for resume collection was August 24th.

Right now I'm wondering when to apply anywhere. When would you guys start sending out stuff to all the counties/cities in your state?

September.

[A'nold]

A'nold,

A follow up to your question before about when to apply for Miami. I was googling online the recruiting coordinator for info and came across the Ohio Northern Law School's Miami SA information page and their due date for resume collection was August 24th.

Right now I'm wondering when to apply anywhere. When would you guys start sending out stuff to all the counties/cities in your state?

September.

I thought that most counties outside of the major cities don't hire a year out. I thought for most of them you had to apply after taking the bar. No?

[seatown12]

A'nold,

A follow up to your question before about when to apply for Miami. I was googling online the recruiting coordinator for info and came across the Ohio Northern Law School's Miami SA information page and their due date for resume collection was August 24th.

Right now I'm wondering when to apply anywhere. When would you guys start sending out stuff to all the counties/cities in your state?

September.

I thought that most counties outside of the major cities don't hire a year out. I thought for most of them you had to apply after taking the bar. No?

Ya this is true but worst case scenario they just send an email reply telling you so.

[Anonymous User]

Hey guys,
I am a graduate of a NYC school headed to one of the DA's offices in the city (NY, BX, BK, Qu, SI) following the bar. I received interviews at all offices except one and received offers from 3. Here are my tips to land a gig at a DA's office.

1. INTERN- every person in my class has interned at a district attorney's office somewhere. whether it be in NY, or another state, or county, every single person has this line on their resume. DA's offices are also more partial to ppl that do defense work like a PD, as it usually takes that experience coupled with a internship at the DA's office to truly see the "light". Internships with federal agencies such as the USAO or Federal Defenders is also looked favorably upon, however there are stark differences in their jobs (mainly resources and time allocation). I had both DA and USAO experience and through an interviewer was told that they liked my dedication to criminal prosecution.

2. CLASSES/GRADES- EVIDENCE, CRIM PRO, TRIAL AD- without these classes you will be not be taken seriously. These are the background classes for 90% of what you will be doing in the DA's office. If your school has a prosecution clinic, and many schools in the NY area do, do it. 2 people from my school who did the clinic had a leg up in the office due to their work there. I did not do a clinic as I did an externship(will talk about in pt. 4), but in my 1st round interview in one of the DA's office, i noticed he underlined on my transcript- Evidence, Crim Pro, Trial Ad, Professional Responsibility, White Collar Crime, etc. While grades used to not be such an important factor, I have noticed they have increasingly become more important in admissions decisions. As in a candidate with a 3.4 or a 3.3 will def be considered greater than someone with a 3.1 or a 3.08.

3. STUDENT TEAMS, STUDENT GROUPS- DA's offices look very favorable upon Moot court as well as trial advocacy teams. Many of the people in my class were either members of one of these teams or both. Moot court I have seen has been particularly praised as often the people who go into DA's offices are very trial oriented, and they need people in appeals who can write as well as argue in front of a panel. I think my membership on Moot Court and various roles including participant in competitions gave me a leg up in the process. Student groups such as prisoners rights advocacy groups are also looked favorable upon as it shows a dedication to serving the community and interacting with people who have been part of the criminal justice system.

4. REFERENCES- make contacts with ADA's or former ADA's who are professors or adjuncts in your school. By speaking with them and making connections, if you show a significant interest, you can list them as references (which most DA's offices require 3 usually made up of professors and past legal employers). I was able to do an externship with a office in NYC and my externship professor was an ADA at that office. His recommendation set me apart from other interns as I was able to get a recommendation from someone who knew both my legal work and academic ability.


5. STORY- have a compelling story as to why you want to be a prosecutor. In this market you honestly need a compelling story as to why you want to become a prosecutor that will set you apart from the other applicants. To give a small one line of myself, I grew up in the county that I will be an ADA, and due to the low socioeconomic neighborhood in which I lived, I wanted to make a difference on the level of crime and drug abuse in my hometown.

This isn't a job for ppl who struck out at 2L oci. Practically everyone i talked too who landed something at OCI (which is very few, C/O 2011), would love to be a prosecutor because its such a fun and great job. That said most ppl have planned for this position starting 1L summer or the 2L semesters. The drawback is pay, as is not extremely rewarding (NY: 60G, BX:56G BK: 50G, Q: 54G, SI: 53G). However there are many programs which can help a DA or PD including- IBR, PILF, LRAP, JRJ, NYBAR,- In which LRAP or JRJ can basically pay your IBR payments for you for 10 yrs in which your debt balance will be forgiven. The only drawback is that your limited to government and public interest service.

If anyone has any further questions regarding DA's offices, particularly in NY (i have done a lot of research regarding each office), please post your q here.

Is this guy/girl still around? I have questions about the second round interviews in the NYC area. I have a few coming up. Any tips for second rounds? Also, how do you give good answers to, the " Why our office?" Thanks in advance.

[Anonymous User]

Just got selected for the panel interview with the Miami-Dade Public Defender. Hopefully other PD offices will start giving interview notifications.

[A'nold]

A'nold,

Right now I'm wondering when to apply anywhere. When would you guys start sending out stuff to all the counties/cities in your state?

September.

I thought that most counties outside of the major cities don't hire a year out. I thought for most of them you had to apply after taking the bar. No?

Ya this is true but worst case scenario they just send an email reply telling you so.

So am I now like in some kind of twilight zone where I'm too late for those that hire in advance but too early for the rest? If so, that sucks.

[seatown12]

So am I now like in some kind of twilight zone where I'm too late for those that hire in advance but too early for the rest? If so, that sucks.

I don't think you're too late but now is the time to be applying. The twilight zone will be second semester if we don't get any of the "in advance" jobs, and it will suck.

[Geist13]

Anyone have some sort of list or off hand knowledge of prosecutor offices that have student-attorney programs. I know of a few but am looking for some more. I don't want to spend another summer just writing stuff; I want to see some court. The office I worked at last summer doesn't allow it, which blows.

[Anonymous User]

Hey guys,
I am a graduate of a NYC school headed to one of the DA's offices in the city (NY, BX, BK, Qu, SI) following the bar. I received interviews at all offices except one and received offers from 3. Here are my tips to land a gig at a DA's office.

1. INTERN- every person in my class has interned at a district attorney's office somewhere. whether it be in NY, or another state, or county, every single person has this line on their resume. DA's offices are also more partial to ppl that do defense work like a PD, as it usually takes that experience coupled with a internship at the DA's office to truly see the "light". Internships with federal agencies such as the USAO or Federal Defenders is also looked favorably upon, however there are stark differences in their jobs (mainly resources and time allocation). I had both DA and USAO experience and through an interviewer was told that they liked my dedication to criminal prosecution.

2. CLASSES/GRADES- EVIDENCE, CRIM PRO, TRIAL AD- without these classes you will be not be taken seriously. These are the background classes for 90% of what you will be doing in the DA's office. If your school has a prosecution clinic, and many schools in the NY area do, do it. 2 people from my school who did the clinic had a leg up in the office due to their work there. I did not do a clinic as I did an externship(will talk about in pt. 4), but in my 1st round interview in one of the DA's office, i noticed he underlined on my transcript- Evidence, Crim Pro, Trial Ad, Professional Responsibility, White Collar Crime, etc. While grades used to not be such an important factor, I have noticed they have increasingly become more important in admissions decisions. As in a candidate with a 3.4 or a 3.3 will def be considered greater than someone with a 3.1 or a 3.08.

3. STUDENT TEAMS, STUDENT GROUPS- DA's offices look very favorable upon Moot court as well as trial advocacy teams. Many of the people in my class were either members of one of these teams or both. Moot court I have seen has been particularly praised as often the people who go into DA's offices are very trial oriented, and they need people in appeals who can write as well as argue in front of a panel. I think my membership on Moot Court and various roles including participant in competitions gave me a leg up in the process. Student groups such as prisoners rights advocacy groups are also looked favorable upon as it shows a dedication to serving the community and interacting with people who have been part of the criminal justice system.

4. REFERENCES- make contacts with ADA's or former ADA's who are professors or adjuncts in your school. By speaking with them and making connections, if you show a significant interest, you can list them as references (which most DA's offices require 3 usually made up of professors and past legal employers). I was able to do an externship with a office in NYC and my externship professor was an ADA at that office. His recommendation set me apart from other interns as I was able to get a recommendation from someone who knew both my legal work and academic ability.


5. STORY- have a compelling story as to why you want to be a prosecutor. In this market you honestly need a compelling story as to why you want to become a prosecutor that will set you apart from the other applicants. To give a small one line of myself, I grew up in the county that I will be an ADA, and due to the low socioeconomic neighborhood in which I lived, I wanted to make a difference on the level of crime and drug abuse in my hometown.

This isn't a job for ppl who struck out at 2L oci. Practically everyone i talked too who landed something at OCI (which is very few, C/O 2011), would love to be a prosecutor because its such a fun and great job. That said most ppl have planned for this position starting 1L summer or the 2L semesters. The drawback is pay, as is not extremely rewarding (NY: 60G, BX:56G BK: 50G, Q: 54G, SI: 53G). However there are many programs which can help a DA or PD including- IBR, PILF, LRAP, JRJ, NYBAR,- In which LRAP or JRJ can basically pay your IBR payments for you for 10 yrs in which your debt balance will be forgiven. The only drawback is that your limited to government and public interest service.

If anyone has any further questions regarding DA's offices, particularly in NY (i have done a lot of research regarding each office), please post your q here.

Is this guy/girl still around? I have questions about the second round interviews in the NYC area. I have a few coming up. Any tips for second rounds? Also, how do you give good answers to, the " Why our office?" Thanks in advance.

I didn't post what you quoted, but I've collected a lot of experience interviewing in NYC. For the second round panel, you'll be mostly working through hypos. Without knowing which office you're interviewing in, I can't really give too much specific advice, but they're looking to see how you work your way through the hypos and they're testing your gut and ethics (more so than correct answers). You've probably done this already but you'll want to Google criminal law interview hypotheticals. Some law schools put together some useful guides (Pace has a pretty good one). I found it very helpful to know what kind of fact patterns prosecutors typically ask.

Be clear in your reasons for wanting to be a prosecutor. And balanced. And by that I just mean know that "doing the right thing" isn't always throwing people in jail, sometimes it's dismissing charges. Know which situations calls for which responses.

Know Brady and Giglio. Woudn't hurt to know Rosario. Try to be somewhat familiar with the ethics rules.

For the "Why our office?" question, you can answer broadly and tell them it's very important to you to be in a busy office (this applies to all the NYC offices). Also, consult their press releases and see what they're doing that makes them unique. The Bronx, for example, is pretty proud of its community outreach and they do a LOT of that. And Queens, for example, is unique in its DV prosecution policy. Just know a little something about the particular office and gush.

I hope this is helpful -- good luck!!

[A'nold]

So am I now like in some kind of twilight zone where I'm too late for those that hire in advance but too early for the rest? If so, that sucks.

I don't think you're too late but now is the time to be applying. The twilight zone will be second semester if we don't get any of the "in advance" jobs, and it will suck.

Sweet. I'll get my stuff together and sent out this week I guess then.

[Anonymous User]

I didn't post what you quoted, but I've collected a lot of experience interviewing in NYC. For the second round panel, you'll be mostly working through hypos. Without knowing which office you're interviewing in, I can't really give too much specific advice, but they're looking to see how you work your way through the hypos and they're testing your gut and ethics (more so than correct answers). You've probably done this already but you'll want to Google criminal law interview hypotheticals. Some law schools put together some useful guides (Pace has a pretty good one). I found it very helpful to know what kind of fact patterns prosecutors typically ask.

Be clear in your reasons for wanting to be a prosecutor. And balanced. And by that I just mean know that "doing the right thing" isn't always throwing people in jail, sometimes it's dismissing charges. Know which situations calls for which responses.

Know Brady and Giglio. Woudn't hurt to know Rosario. Try to be somewhat familiar with the ethics rules.

For the "Why our office?" question, you can answer broadly and tell them it's very important to you to be in a busy office (this applies to all the NYC offices). Also, consult their press releases and see what they're doing that makes them unique. The Bronx, for example, is pretty proud of its community outreach and they do a LOT of that. And Queens, for example, is unique in its DV prosecution policy. Just know a little something about the particular office and gush.

I hope this is helpful -- good luck!![/quote]





Thanks so much!!!!!

[A'nold]

I just wanted to take the time to complain about all the offices that insist on making you fill out an entire application instead of just accepting a resume and cover letter.

[Anonymous User]

I just wanted to take the time to complain about all the offices that insist on making you fill out an entire application instead of just accepting a resume and cover letter.

And on that note, could someone please explain the difference between a cover letter and a statement of interest? :::coughcoughBrooklyncoughcough:::

[Gettingstarted1928]

I have two questions I was hoping someone could answer:

1. When should we start applying to DA/PD offices for a summer internship? I keep on hearing people talk about applying to private sector internships as early as December, but that seems a little early for DA/PD offices.

2. What does a typical day at either of these offices look like for interns? How about for attorneys working in these offices? I've always assumed the day consists mainly of research, writing memos (are memos even used in criminal law?), and court.

[Tanicius]

I have two questions I was hoping someone could answer:

1. When should we start applying to DA/PD offices for a summer internship? I keep on hearing people talk about applying to private sector internships as early as December, but that seems a little early for DA/PD offices.

2. What does a typical day at either of these offices look like for interns? How about for attorneys working in these offices? I've always assumed the day consists mainly of research, writing memos (are memos even used in criminal law?), and court.

I can help a little with your first question. The answer is: It depends. It depends on the office, and it depends on the region. At least out in the Bay Area, most of the counties I've talked to start looking at applications in February. In fact they ask most people to hold off on applying until they host their tables at a public interest job fair in February. I have some friends, however, that applied in December, and some got job offers the same month. One of them applied to an office on the other coast though.