Criminal Complaints

The State Attorney’s Office is committed to the vigorous prosecution of all criminal cases. If you believe a crime has been committed, you must first file a complaint with the law enforcement agency in the municipality or county area where the crime was committed; i.e., the place where the money was exchanged, the contract was signed, or the fraudulent representations were made to you, etc.

The appropriate law enforcement agency will then investigate your complaint, and will forward the case to our office. This office will review the case package to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to file formal charges and proceed with prosecution.

Important note: The law enforcement agency may determine that no crime was committed or decline to accept an initial complaint based upon their review of the allegations. They will usually refer to those cases as a "civil" matter. In that event, you should review the following sections to determine what other remedies might be available to you: