A Day in the Life of a Prosecutor

I came across this article some time ago. It's written by a narcotics prosecutor from Kentucky called Sterling Beaumont (I think that's a name--an amazing one) and I found it very interesting and informative. Because it's very difficult to imagine what a prosecutor does all day without resorting, as he says, to Law and Order. But Beaumont says this is a very misleading preconception to have. He doesn't paint a rosy picture, in fact he is quite disparaging of the profession. It is a busy job, difficult, frustrating, hectic and discouraging. He ends:

"A day in the life of a prosecutor is long. Looking back, I could have stayed in the office until seven or eight o'clock at night each night and still not have accomplished everything I wanted to do. I typically worked about fifty hours per week because I wanted to spend time with my family. Ultimately, the crushing caseload and the psychological grind of hundreds of similar cases led to my return to private practice as a civil litigator."

Okay, I realise this is the life to which I can look forward, but oddly, I am undeterred. First, I don't think his experience is necessarily going to be mine, I know the resources available and staff numbers vary greatly depending on where you practice. I may get lucky and have a manageable caseload or I may get plunged into the abyss and never return. Second, people handle things differently and it may turn out I simply handle things more calmly or become less discouraged than Beaumont. Or I may just be better suited for the work. Third, I don't want to avoid something because other people have found it difficult. I want to try at least.

However, it is useful to know that other people have successfully moved into private practice from prosecution.

Still I can't avoid the possible comparison with the Joad family in the Grapes of Wrath, which I just finished reading for the first time. They hear over and over again of the misery they face if they continue on their path but are imbued with so much of the hope, optimism and psychological denial that defines the American people and the American experience that they carry on. And what do they find? I don't wish to give it away, because I think every American needs to read this book. It suffices to say that I am now reading a Philippa Gregory novel to recover.