In Support of the Seattle University School of Law Prosecution Clerkship

Dean Clark,

We sincerely appreciate and support the work you have done to create the Prosecution Clerkship with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. As law students, we understand the importance of real-world immersive experiences and believe the implementation of the Prosecution Clerkship will enhance our school’s reach in the community and advance our students’ advocacy skills. We also understand that while the program may not align with certain individuals’ ideas of our school’s social justice mission, we believe the two are not mutually exclusive.

A number of students who have had the opportunity to work at the King County Prosecutor’s Office through externships have praised the office’s commitment to improving social justice and noted a vast improvement in their own legal skills upon completion of the program. Aside from improving their legal writing and research, these students were able to advocate on behalf of victims of domestic violence, human trafficking, and sex crimes. Further, these students observed and participated in programs dedicated to improving the legal system for traditionally underrepresented individuals, such as the King County Prosecutor’s Office Family Intervention and Restorative Justice program—geared to provide services to victim of domestic violence and keep youth out of the juvenile justice system.

While it is our hope that Seattle University School of Law will continue to develop these relationships with the prosecutors’ offices in our region, the currently proposed Prosecution Clerkship is a tremendous step forward in the right direction. However, we do recognize that such a program does not come without controversy. Recent events have exemplified and brought to public light historic challenges facing the American criminal justice system. Supporters of this clerkship do not deny that this system is flawed and that these defects disproportionately impact minorities and people of color; however, as prosecutors will likely continue to play a role in the system for the foreseeable future, who better to fill these positions than Seattle University students and alumni, committed to making meaningful reforms? Indeed, many students at Seattle University School of Law aspire to work in local and state agencies for this very reason.

For students hoping to enter such positions, this program represents not only a genuine learning opportunity, but also a very real employment opportunity. Local prosecutors’ offices and the attorney general’s office employ, and continue to hire, a large percentage of Seattle University graduates—many of whom are minorities and people of color. To the extent that this program continues to foster these relationships, it benefits not only those students directly participating in the program, but also our student body as a whole, as our employment statistics and school’s reputation in the Seattle legal community improve.

While this letter represents a very broad overview of our support for this program, many of us also will also be individually providing more detailed thoughts and suggestions, and are looking forward to meeting with you to discuss the topic. It is our hope that this support serves to counter what we are sure will be the very vocal opposition to this program, and encourage you to continue to seek out these types of opportunities for our student body.