Public Prosecutors and Discretion: A Comparative Study

The role of the public prosecutor in sentencing has become the subject of intense debate in recent years. In this original study the author assesses the influence of the public prosecutor in Scotland, the Netherlands, England and Wales and Germany over the process of sentencing offenders in the criminal justice system. This study offers a detailed analysis of prosecutorial power to issue sanctions, such as fines, warnings and referrals to rehabilitation at the pre-trial stage, and develops three new models of justice seeking to analyze and explain the increasing use of prosecutorial power. It will be of great interest to all scholars of the criminal justice system and the sentencing of offenders, and in comparative criminal justice policy and practice.