DOJ-OGR-00003322.jpg

Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document 204-3 Filed 04/16/21 Page 146 of 348 affirmative steps the attorney reasonably believed were required to comply with an obligation or standard. Il. APPLICABLE STANDARDS OF CONDUCT A. The United States Attorneys’ Manual Among its many provisions, the United States Attorneys’ Manual (USAM) includes general statements of principles that summarize appropriate considerations to be weighed, and desirable practices to be followed, by federal prosecutors when discharging their prosecutorial responsibilities.!8? The goal of the USAM is to promote “the reasoned exercise of prosecutorial authority and contribute to the fair, evenhanded administration of the Federal criminal laws,” and to promote public confidence that important prosecutorial decisions will be made “rationally and objectively on the merits of each case.” USAM § 9-27.001. Because the USAM is designed to assist in structuring the decision-making process of government attorneys, many of its principles are cast in general terms, with a view to providing guidance rather than mandating results. /d.; see also USAM § 9-27.120, comment (“It is expected that each Federal prosecutor will be guided by these principles in carrying out his/her criminal law enforcement responsibilities . ... However, it is not intended that reference to these principles will require a particular prosecutorial decision in any given case.”); USAM § 9-27.110, comment (“Under the Federal criminal justice system, the prosecutor has wide latitude in determining when, whom, how, and even whether to prosecute for apparent violations of Federal criminal law.”). However, USAM § 9-27.130 provides that AUSAs who depart from the principles of federal prosecution articulated in the USAM may be subject to internal discipline. In particular, USAM § 9-27.130 states that each U.S. Attorney should establish internal office procedures to ensure that prosecutorial decisions are made at an appropriate level of responsibility and are consistent with the principles set forth in the USAM, and that serious, unjustified departures from the principles set forth in the USAM are followed by remedial action, including the imposition of disciplinary sanctions when warranted and deemed appropriate. U.S. Attorneys have “plenary authority with regard to federal criminal matters” and may modify or depart from the principles set forth in the USAM as deemed necessary in the interest of fair and effective law enforcement within their individual judicial districts. USAM §§ 9-2.001, 9.27-140. The USAM provisions are supplemented by the Department’s Criminal Resource Manual, which provides additional guidance relating to the conduct of federal criminal prosecutions. 1. USAM Provisions Relating to the Initiation and Declination of a Federal Prosecution Federal prosecutors do not open a case on every matter referred to them. USAM § 9-2.020 explicitly authorizes a U.S. Attorney “to decline prosecution in any case referred directly to 189 In 2018, the USAM was revised and reissued as the Justice Manual. In assessing the subjects’ conduct, OPR relies upon the standards of conduct in effect at the time of the events in issue. Accordingly, unless otherwise noted, citations in this Report are to the 1997 edition of the USAM, as revised through January 2007. 120 DOJ-OGR- 00003322