Prosecutor in the context of "Satan"

A plaintiff (Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an action) before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the plaintiff and make the appropriate court order (e.g., an order for damages). Plaintiff is the term used in civil cases in most English-speaking jurisdictions, the notable exceptions being England and Wales, where a plaintiff has, since the introduction of the Civil Procedure Rules in 1999, been known as a "claimant" and Scotland, where the party has always been known as the "pursuer". In criminal cases, the prosecutor brings the case against the defendant, but the key complaining party is often called the "complainant".

In some jurisdictions, a lawsuit is commenced by filing a summons, claim form or a complaint. These documents are known as pleadings, that set forth the alleged wrongs committed by the defendant or defendants with a demand for relief. In other jurisdictions, the action is commenced by service of legal process by delivery of these documents on the defendant by a process server; they are only filed with the court subsequently with an affidavit from the process server that they had been given to the defendant according to the rules of civil procedure.

In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a local government area, typically a county or a group of counties. The exact scope of the office varies by state. Generally, the prosecutor is said to represent the people of the jurisdiction in the state's courts, typically in criminal matters, against defendants. District attorneys are elected in almost all states, and the role is generally partisan. This is unlike similar roles in other common law jurisdictions, where chief prosecutors are appointed based on merit and expected to be politically independent.

The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case against an individual suspected of breaking the state's criminal law, initiating and directing further criminal investigations, guiding and recommending the sentencing of offenders, and are the only attorneys allowed to participate in grand jury proceedings. The prosecutors decide what criminal charges to bring, and when and where a person will answer to those charges. In carrying out their duties, prosecutors have the authority to investigate persons, grant immunity to witnesses and accused criminals, and plea bargain with defendants.

In law, a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, either oral or written, of what they know or claim to know.

A witness might be compelled to provide testimony in court, before a grand jury, before an administrative tribunal, before a deposition officer, or in a variety of other legal proceedings. A subpoena is a legal document that commands a person to appear at a proceeding. It is used to compel the testimony of a witness in a trial. Usually, it can be issued by a judge or by the lawyer representing the plaintiff or the defendant in a civil trial or by the prosecutor or the defense attorney in a criminal proceeding, or by a government agency. In many jurisdictions, it is compulsory to comply with the subpoena and either take an oath or solemnly affirm to testify truthfully under penalty of perjury.

Jury nullification, also known as jury equity or as a perverse verdict, is a decision by the jury in a criminal trial resulting in a verdict of not guilty even though they think a defendant has broken the law. The jury's reasons may include the belief that the law itself is unjust, that the prosecutor has misapplied the law in the defendant's case, that the punishment for breaking the law is too harsh, or general frustrations with the criminal justice system. It has been commonly used to oppose what jurors perceive as unjust laws, such as those that once penalized runaway slaves under the Fugitive Slave Act, prohibited alcohol during Prohibition, or criminalized draft evasion during the Vietnam War. Some juries have also refused to convict due to their own prejudices in favor of the defendant. Such verdicts are possible because a jury has an absolute right to return any verdict it chooses.

Nullification is not an official part of criminal procedure, but is the logical consequence of two rules governing the systems in which it exists:

A plea bargain, also known as a plea agreement or plea deal, is a legal arrangement in criminal law where the defendant agrees to plead guilty or no contest to a charge in exchange for concessions from the prosecutor. These concessions can include a reduction in the severity of the charges, the dismissal of some charges, or a more lenient sentencing recommendation. Plea bargaining serves as a mechanism to expedite the resolution of criminal cases, allowing both the prosecution and the defense to avoid the time, expense, and uncertainty of a trial. It is a prevalent practice in the United States, where it resolves the vast majority of criminal cases, and has been adopted in various forms in other legal systems worldwide.

Plea bargains can take different forms, such as charge bargaining, where a defendant pleads guilty to a lesser offense, or sentence bargaining, where the expected sentence is agreed upon before a guilty plea. In addition, count bargaining involves pleading guilty to a subset of multiple charges. While plea bargaining can reduce the burden on courts and offer defendants a chance for lighter sentences, it has been subject to criticism. Detractors argue that it may encourage defendants, including the innocent, to plead guilty out of fear of harsher penalties if convicted at trial. Proponents, however, emphasize its role in conserving judicial resources and providing a degree of certainty for all parties involved.

Criminal justice is the delivery of justice when a crime is committed. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include retribution, reformation and rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other crimes, and support for victims. The primary institutions of the criminal justice system are the police, prosecution and defense lawyers, the courts and the prisons system.

A criminal charge is a formal accusation made by a governmental authority (usually a public prosecutor or the police) asserting that somebody has committed a crime. A charging document, which contains one or more criminal charges or counts, can take several forms, including:

• complaint
• information
• indictment
• citation
• traffic ticket

The charging document is what generally starts a criminal case in court. But the procedure by which somebody is charged with a crime and what happens when somebody has been charged varies from country to country and even sometimes within a country.

The Public Prosecutor General at the Federal Court of Justice (German: Generalbundesanwalt or Generalbundesanwältin beim Bundesgerichtshof [GBA], lit. 'General Federal Attorney at the Federal Court of Justice') is the federal prosecutor of Germany, representing the federal government at the Bundesgerichtshof, the federal court of justice. The office of the Public Prosecutor General is located in Karlsruhe. Besides its role in appellate cases, the Public Prosecutor General has primary jurisdiction in cases of crimes against the state (in particular terrorism, espionage and treason), and offences under the Völkerstrafgesetzbuch (genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes). The Public Prosecutor General also represents Germany in certain civil and administrative cases.

The Federal Minister of Justice proposes the Public Prosecutor General with the approval of the Bundesrat to the President of Germany for appointment. The Public Prosecutor General is considered a political official. He is supposed to share the criminal and security policy views and objectives of the respective acting federal government and can be recalled without outspoken reasons at any time. He is subject to the supervision of the Federal Minister of Justice.