Legal Definitions - sham prosecution

A sham prosecution refers to a legal proceeding that appears to be a legitimate criminal prosecution but is, in fact, initiated and pursued for an improper, ulterior motive rather than a genuine belief in the defendant's guilt or a sincere desire to uphold the law.

Essentially, it is a misuse of the legal system, where the prosecutorial power is weaponized to achieve an objective unrelated to justice, such as political retaliation, suppressing dissent, eliminating business competition, or pursuing a personal vendetta.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Political Retaliation: Imagine a city mayor who is facing a strong challenge from a political opponent in an upcoming election. The mayor uses their influence to have the city prosecutor initiate a criminal investigation and bring charges against the opponent for a minor, obscure zoning violation that is rarely enforced against other citizens. The charges, while technically valid, are pursued with unusual vigor and publicity, clearly aimed at discrediting the opponent's campaign and removing them from the political race.

  This illustrates a sham prosecution because the primary motivation behind the charges is not to genuinely enforce zoning laws, but to silence a political rival and interfere with an election, using the legal system as a tool for political gain.

• Business Sabotage: Consider a large, established corporation that wants to eliminate a smaller, innovative startup as a competitor. The corporation leverages its connections within the local district attorney's office to initiate a criminal investigation against the startup's CEO for alleged minor regulatory infractions that are common in the industry but typically result in civil fines, not criminal charges. The investigation is highly publicized, causing investors to withdraw their support and customers to lose trust in the startup, ultimately driving it out of business.

  This is a sham prosecution because the legal process is being weaponized not to genuinely address a serious crime, but to sabotage a business competitor by creating legal and reputational hurdles, thereby achieving a competitive advantage through improper means.

• Personal Vendetta: Suppose a local prosecutor has a long-standing personal dispute with a former neighbor over a property boundary. The prosecutor uses their official position to initiate a criminal investigation and bring charges against the neighbor for a trivial incident, such as a minor verbal altercation that occurred during the dispute, which would normally be handled through mediation or civil court, if at all. The prosecutor dedicates significant public resources to the case despite its minor nature and lack of serious criminal intent.

  This exemplifies a sham prosecution because the legal system is being used as a personal instrument of revenge or harassment, rather than for the legitimate purpose of upholding justice based on the merits of a criminal offense. The prosecution is a pretense for pursuing a personal agenda.