District attorneys have collectively been the largest roadblock to modernizing and reforming our justice system. This is one of the reasons the ACLU of Oregon just launched a major, multi-year campaign for district attorney reform, called They Report to You. Specifically, we’re educating the public about who district attorneys are, why they matter, and how the public can make sure they’re accountable to voters.

Many Oregonians don’t realize how powerful district attorneys are. They’re the most powerful actors in the criminal justice system. Among their many powers, district attorneys decide who gets charged with a crime or who goes free. They decide when youth are charged as adults and who gets treatment or who goes to jail. It’s DAs who decide whether to charge a police officer for misconduct and when to pursue the death penalty.