Prosecution Function

• DO find proper LEGAL SUPPORT for your paper.  Legal support can come from:
  • Law review articles
  • Legal treatises
  • Primary sources of law: Cases, statutes, regulations, constitutions.
  • Statements of policy, such as attorney general manuals and memos and ABA and National Standards.

You may use news articles to support FACTUAL ASSERTIONS but not for legal support.  DON'T use news articles for legal support.  

• DO conduct an INTERVIEW to obtain support for your paper.  An in-person interview is preferred, but if absolutely necessary a written source can be used.
   
• DO cite to reliable sources such as law review articles, primary sources of law, legal treatises, etc.  DON'T cite to Wikipedia or other web sources of questionable reliability.
   
• DO look at reliable websites, such as those linked in this guide.

• DO start by searching  law review and journal articles.  Use Google Scholar, Lexis or Westlaw and SSRN.
   
• DO consult legal treatises (books), especially for background information on the law.
   
• DO consult scholarly articles from other disciplines, such as criminal justice, political science, psychology, sociology, etc.
   
• DO search legislative history documents, especially if your paper revolves around a statute or sentencing guidelines.  Even if it does not, you can often find hearings containing expert testimony on many issues.