Editorial
Front Page - Friday, October 16, 2009
State district attorneys general conference returns to Scenic City
Samara Litvack
Later this month, prosecutors from across the state will gather in Chattanooga for the annual Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference.
Hamilton County District Attorney Bill Cox says the event normally rotates among Nashville, Knoxville, Memphis and Chattanooga, and he is excited to see it returning to his hometown after only one year away.
“They really do enjoy coming to Chattanooga because of the scenic beauty, the amenities and the hospitality that the city seems to afford them,” he says. “I think it’s good for the city.”
The Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference will be held Tuesday, Oct. 20 through Friday, Oct. 23, bringing approximately 550 district attorneys and assistant district attorneys to the city and creating an estimated $306,900 in revenue.
The conference fulfills the annual continuing legal education requirement, as present district attorneys and assistant district attorneys will attend seminars that bring them up to speed on changing technologies and emerging evidentiary issues.
“It’s a very good and necessary training that we have every year,” says Cox. “Of course, we have supplemental training locally, here in our office, but the main event is our annual October conference.”
As pertinent criminal law cases are decided in appellate court and the Supreme Court, information about them is distributed to district attorneys’ offices across the state. The annual conference, Cox says, is essentially a summation of these cases.
“You have to constantly keep up with what’s going on in the state, especially with the Supreme Court decisions,” Cox says. “This is sort of a roundup of everything and a categorization of what’s most important, things that we need to concentrate on. It’s a more in depth look in different areas.”
The conference headquarters in Nashville has a full staff that works diligently to create a curriculum and set up speakers for the event each year.
“Sometimes they are speakers from other jurisdictions, from other states,” Cox says. “Many times there are speakers from our own conference, from within our own ranks.”
Seminars held throughout the four-day conference include legislative updates, which educate attendees on statute changes and new evidentiary issues, and address specific concerns throughout the state.
Speakers will discuss a variety of topics, which have included domestic violence, child abuse, methamphetamine and other law enforcement-related information in years past. Cox, who was last year’s conference president, has been a speaker at past conferences.
“I think the last thing I did was a presentation on the use of demonstrative evidence, in particular the use of PowerPoint in closing argument, the use of PowerPoint in presentation of evidence through witnesses and ways to further utilize technology in criminal trials,” he says. “Things like how to use Google Maps with a PowerPoint demonstration, how to create an interactive type of a crime scene.”
Seminars such as this highlight various ways to perfect the craft of prosecution. Presenters share “war stories” with their peers, says Cox, and everyone in attendance benefits.
“District attorneys and prosecutors in general, if they have a technique or procedure that’s effective, then they don’t mind sharing it with other prosecutors,” he says, and annual seminars are the perfect way to share these tricks of the trade.
“What’s the best way to present cell phone evidence, for example? What’s the best way to present DNA evidence? It can get kind of technical and difficult. What’s the best way to put on a child witness? Those (are) different types of tips and techniques on how to accomplish our mission.”
Aside from structured seminars, this type of information can be passed through casual networking. Cox says breakout sessions often form between and after classes, where personal stories are exchanged, connections are made and the day’s activities are discussed.
“It’s been my experience that it’s a very effective learning process,” he says. And, since the law is constantly changing as a result of case law decisions, the annual conference allows attendees to look back at the year past and deduct probable crime patterns for the future.
“I look forward to it every year because it’s a good learning experience and it’s a good weekend of the year and it’s a good prediction of things to come.”
The conference will begin on Tuesday with an education committee meeting and luncheon, followed by a district attorney’s business meeting, held from 1:30 to 5 p.m. Registration will be open from 3 to 5 p.m.
Opening remarks by James W. Kirby, conference executive director, and General J. Michael Taylor, president of the conference and district attorney of the 12th Judicial District, will begin Wednesday’s program.
Seminars on the child support program and vehicular homicide will follow, as will a search warrants seminar, led by Gene Perrin, assistant district attorney of the 2nd Judicial District. Later that morning, Guy Randall Jones, conference deputy executive director, and Rep. Kent Coleman, 49th Representative District, will lead a legislative update.
After lunch, the “Making the Best Case Possible: A Digital/Cyber Perspective” seminar will be conducted by Barry Matson, deputy director of the Alabama District Attorneys Association and chief prosecutor of Alabama Computer Forensic Laboratories. Jim Derry will lead a Tennessee Methamphetamine Informant Services update, followed by a forced blood withdrawal update, by Tom Kimball and Jim Camp, both traffic safety resource prosecutors. Social networking will follow.
Thursday will include more vehicular homicide and child support seminars, as well as Lexis Nexis training by Maria Stewart, Esq., Lexis Nexis government consultant. Richard Incremona, executive assistant prosecutor of Monmouth County, N.J., will lead “Building a Pro-Active Cross Examination,” followed by a criminal law update by Amy L. Tarkington, deputy attorney general. That afternoon, Mark Fulks, senior counsel of the attorney general’s office, will lead a seminar on extraditions. Following that will be the U.S. Supreme Court update, led by Richard Wintory, deputy county attorney of Pima County, Tucson, Ariz.
Friday will open with “What Would the Lone Ranger Do? Preventing Ethical Problems while the Good Guys Still Win,” led by Robert McGuire, assistant district attorney of the 20th Judicial District. The conference will then wrap up with an awards ceremony, led by conference president Taylor, and a Board of Responsibility update, led by Nancy S. Jones, chief disciplinary counsel.
For more information, visit www.tndagc.com.
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