The Trial Division is in many ways the backbone of the District Attorney’s Office. The approximately 40 assistant district attorneys assigned to the Division are responsible for the prosecution of all cases charged by the Office, except for those assigned to one of the specialized units. The Trial Division is supervised by a deputy district attorney and two chief senior assistant district attorneys.

Two attorneys are assigned to each of the Superior Court judges handling criminal cases. Assistant district attorneys are paired with senior assistants and work as a part of a prosecution team that includes investigators as well as victim/witness advocates. Assistants spend on average two days per week in the courtroom handling plea and arraignment calendars, bond calendars, and motions calendars, while approximately two weeks each month are devoted to trial calendars.

Assistant district attorneys new to the Office are taken through an intensive eight-week training course in which they are instructed from beginning to end on the prosecution of felony criminal cases. Additionally, specialized training is provided on an on-going basis by the Training Unit covering topics such as how to use and challenge the testimony of expert witnesses; how to present effective opening and closing arguments; or the use of scientific evidence and techniques such as firearms and fingerprint identification.