DOJ sets case quotas for prosecutors to increase stats
The U.S. Justice Department has set case quotas for prosecutors to prove they are able to do more with less staff.(Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
U.S. Justice Department leaders are requiring its prosecutors to maintain at least 25 open cases in a push for statistics to prove that it’s doing more work with fewer attorneys on staff.
The department is monitoring its case management database to search out disengaged prosecutors failing to handle enough cases. The effort comes as political appointees are trying to counter criticism over the wave of personnel departures, according to a report by Bloomberg Law.
The deputy attorney general’s office communicated the new quota policy to all 93 U.S. attorneys in recent weeks, although a formal policy change is still under development.
“This is the bare minimum and that quantity in and of itself is embarrassingly low. The expectation is much higher,” department spokesperson Kiersten Pels said in a statement obtained by Bloomberg Law. “Hundreds of AUSAs around the country routinely juggle 100+ open matters.”
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