Willfull Ignorance Defined:

WILLFULL IGNORANCE is a subtle prosecutorial space that is intentionally used to conceal misconduct. Enter Napue: This classical Supreme Court precedent is designed specifically to constitutionally halt a prosecutor in that attorney’s tracks; when that prosecuting attorney intentionally chooses to remain willfully blind. Most appropriately, one of the 3 axiomatic prongs that has to be established in a successful Napue claim is- a prosecutor “knew or should have known” of the material falsity. Napue V. Illinois, 360 U.S. 264, 269-271(1959).

In other words, it is a prosecutor’s job, position, duty, responsibility, and primary function to search for and “prevailingly” find the truth. “A prosecutor’s responsibility and duty to correct what he knows to be false and elicit the truth,” Napue, 360 U.S. at 269-270, requires a prosecutor to act when put on notice of the real possibility of false testimony. This duty is not discharged by attempting to finesse the problem by pressing ahead without a diligent and good faith attempt to resolve it. A prosecutor cannot avoid this obligation by refusing to search for the truth and REMAINING WILLFULLY IGNORANT OF THE FACTS.” Bowie, 343 F.3d 1109 (9th Cir. 2001)

The historical Napue prong “or should have known,” is indirectly yet simply and sensibly declaring that an oath-beholden prosecutor has absolutely no excuse to not “know the truth.” “Knowing the truth” could of course include a prosecutor having to admit that the alleged “victim” lied – demonstrably. Or even that the prosecutor may have to swallow their pride, and admit that they were wrong. A prosecutor’s “obligation to govern impartially is as compelling as its obligation to govern at all; and whose interest, therefore, in a (alleged) criminal prosecution is not that it shall win a case, but that justice shall be done.” Berger V. United States, 295 U.S. 78

Indeed, a prosecutor’s primary obligation to “we the people” is to seek, and further, do all in their privileged power to find- and know- the truth. There is no “true” prosecution that is not duty bound to search for truth. Period!