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Nolle prosequi (pronounced /ˈnɒli ˈprɒsəkwaɪ/;^[1] Latin: [ˈnolːe ˈproːsekwiː]) is a Latin legal phrase meaning "to be unwilling to pursue."^[2] It is the term used in many common law criminal jurisdictions to describe a prosecutor's application to discontinue criminal charges before trial, or up until, but before verdict.^[3]

Explanation

Nolle prosequi is a Latin term meaning "we shall no longer prosecute".

It is a declaration made by a prosecutor in a criminal case or by a plaintiff in a civil lawsuit either before or during trial, meaning the case against the defendant is being dropped. The declaration may be made because the charges cannot be proved, the evidence has demonstrated either innocence or a fatal flaw in the prosecution's claim, or the prosecutor no longer thinks the accused is guilty, and/or the accused has passed away. It is generally made after indictment, but is not a guarantee that the person will not be reindicted.

In civil cases, a nolle prosequi may be entered as to one of several counts or to one of several defendants. In a criminal case, it has been held improper for a court to enter an order of nolle prosequi on its own without a motion by the prosecutor. As long a jury trial has not been commenced, the entry of a nolle prosequi is not an adjudication on the merits of the prosecution, and the legal protection against double jeopardy will not automatically bar the charges from being brought again in some fashion.

Nolle prosequi is similar to a declination of prosecution, which is an agreement not to prosecute which may be made by an attorney, but also by aggrieved party. In contrast, nolle prosequi is usually made after a decision to prosecute has already been made. A declination of prosecution may be made for many reasons, such a weak evidence or conflict of interest.

Notable cases

• In 1924, Connecticut prosecutor Homer Stille Cummings dismissed charges against Harold Israel, a vagrant accused of murdering a popular priest in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Cummings demolished the evidence compiled against Israel in a 90-minute courtroom presentation. The case became the basis of the 1947 film Boomerang!.^[4]
• In 1925, prosecutors elected to dismiss murder charges against the remaining ten defendants in the famous case of People vs. Ossian Sweet. It involved a black family that had defended its home against a white mob. They were defended by attorney Clarence Darrow, who was retained by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The trial was presided over by Detroit Recorder's Court Judge Frank Murphy, who went on to become an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. After an initial mistrial, Henry Sweet (Ossian's brother who admitted he fired the shot) was acquitted by a jury on grounds of self defense; the dismissals of the charges against the ten remaining defendants followed.^[5]
• In 1957 John Bodkin Adams, who worked in Eastbourne, England, was tried for the murders of two elderly widows, Edith Alice Morrell and Gertrude Hullett. When he was found not guilty of killing the former, Attorney-General, Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller controversially entered a nolle prosequi regarding the latter charge. Not only was there seemingly little reason to enter it (Adams wasn't suffering from ill health), the Hullett charge was deemed to be the stronger of the two cases. Lord Justice Patrick Devlin, the presiding judge, in his post-trial book termed this "an abuse of power".^[6] Detective Superintendent Herbert Hannam of Scotland Yard, the chief investigator, suspected political interference,^[7] and Home Office pathologist Francis Camps suspected Adams of killing 163 patients.^[7]
• Rape charges were "nolle pros'ed." against basketball player Kobe Bryant after the complainant refused to testify.

Notes

1. ^ "nolle prosequi". Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. 2nd ed. 1989.
2. ^ http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Nolle+prosequi
3. ^ A nolle prosequi can be entered at any time after the indictment or information has been signed and before verdict: R v Dunn (supra); R v Colling (1847) 2 Cox CC 184; R v Sneesby (1951) St R Qd 26; R v Economou (1989) 51 SASR 421; R v Heald (1979) Tas R 185 source: R v Michael Charles Baenisch SASC 5679 (28 June 1996) para. 12
4. ^ Mckenna, Marian C. (2002). Franklin Roosevelt and the great constitutional war. Fordham University Press. pp. 9. http://books.google.com/books?id=oPBjQegx8ZIC&pg=PA8&lpg=PA8&dq=harold+israel+cummings&source=bl&ots=b_UL7qAP9c&sig=gAO1gXkB_H6UZG9FOssVUxGeItA&hl=en&ei=fZDDSvDaG4rflAfHs6TIBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#v=onepage&q=harold%20israel%20cummings&f=false. 
5. ^ Boyle, Kevin, Arc of Justice: A Saga of Race, Civil Rights and Murder in the Jazz Age (Henry Holt & Company, New York: 2004) (National Book Award Winner). ISBN 0805079335; ISBN 978-0805079333.
6. ^ Devlin, 1985
7. ^ ^{a b} Cullen, 2006

• Courts seldom adjudicate on the application for nolle prosequi. Instead, courts typically sign an order prepared by the prosecution or make a docket entry reflecting the case has been "nolle pros'ed."
• Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure 48(a)

See also

Confession of judgment: When used by the Solicitor General of the United States, it has the same effect as a nolle prosequi, but may be used in civil suits as well.

References

• Cullen, Pamela V. (2006) A Stranger in Blood: The Case Files on Dr John Bodkin Adams, London : Elliott & Thompson, ISBN 1-904027-19-9
• Devlin, Patrick (1985) Easing the Passing : the trial of Dr John Bodkin Adams, London : The Bodley Head, ISBN 0-370-30627-9