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County attorney

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by BTRand1 (talk | contribs) at 00:10, 27 July 2018 (added Ohio info and cite: In Ohio a county prosecutor represents the county and state within their county, prosecutes all crimes within the county, and is legal adviser to the board of county commissioners, board of elections, and all other county officers and boards.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

County Attorney
Occupation
Occupation type
Profession
Activity sectors
Law, Law Enforcement
Description
Education required
Law degree, Bar exam
Fields of
employment
Government legal service
Related jobs
Prosecutor, District Attorney, Commonwealth's Attorney, United States Attorney

A county attorney in many areas of the United States is the chief legal officer for a county or local judicial district. It is usually an elected position. The role of the county attorney can be similar to or complementary to that of a local state's attorney, commonwealth's attorney or district attorney.

In some jurisdictions, the county attorney oversees the operations of local prosecutors with respect to violations of county ordinances. In other jurisdictions, the county attorney prosecutes traffic matters and/or misdemeanors. In some states the county attorney prosecutes violations of state laws to the extent that the state permits local prosecution of these. County attorneys do not prosecute federal crimes, which are the jurisdiction of a United States Attorney.

Many county attorneys also bear responsibilities not related to criminal prosecution. These include defending the county against civil suits, occasionally initiating such suits on behalf of the county, preparing or reviewing contracts entered into by the county and providing legal advice and counsel to local government. In some jurisdictions, the county attorney does not handle any criminal matters at all, but serves only as the legal counsel to the county.

For example, in Arizona, Missouri, Montana, and Minnesota a county attorney represents the county and state within their county, prosecutes all felonies occurring within the county, and prosecutes misdemeanors occurring within unincorporated areas of the county. In Ohio a county prosecutor represents the county and state within their county, prosecutes all crimes within the county, and is legal adviser to the board of county commissioners, board of elections, and all other county officers and boards.[1] On the other hand, county attorneys in Kentucky and Virginia[2] prosecute only certain misdemeanors and sometimes traffic matters and serve as legal counsel for their county, with felony prosecutions and prosecutions of offenses not handled by the county attorney being the responsibility of the commonwealth's attorney for the given county.

References

  1. ^ The Office of the County Prosecuting Attorney is granted its authority by Ohio Revised Code Chapter 309
  2. ^ "Virginia Code § 15.2-1542. Creation of office of county, city or town attorney authorized; appointment, salary and duties". law.lis.virginia.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-17.