Statement in Response to Media Inquiries

Author: District Attorney
Date: 2/16/2021 6:00 PM

Statement responding to numerous media inquiries regarding a letter sent from a defense attorney to a San Luis Obispo County law enforcement agency.

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The District Attorney’s office is confident that the facts and circumstances surrounding Mr. Grocott’s arrest will be fully and fairly revealed in court once the matter is tried to a jury of our community members. The District Attorney will not respond to the non-fact based rhetoric of Mr. Grocott’s counsel. In fact, the California Rules of Professional Conduct prohibit any attorney involved in the litigation of a case from making a statement the attorney reasonably knows will be disseminated to the public and that has a substantial likelihood of prejudicing the case. This includes not only statements by an individual attorney, but the public release of evidence outside of the court process that poses the same threat to due process of law.  The rules of professional responsibility are intended to assure the fair application and due process of law for all parties. These rules apply equally to prosecutors and criminal defense attorneys. 

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