Criminal Charges / Crimes

Regarding whether the police will arrest an abuser even if the victim asks them not to, this could depend on various factors such as if the police see evidence of the abuse (such as physical injuries) or if the police witness the crime occurring – there must be something to give the police “probable cause” to believe a crime occurred. Some states have mandatory arrest laws, which say that the police have to arrest in certain situations.

Regarding whether the prosecutor will prosecute if the abuser is charged with a crime, generally, it may not be up to the victim whether or not the charges are dropped. It may be up to the district attorney whether or not to prosecute and the judge or jury whether or not to convict. Sometimes, the police and the prosecutor go forward with a domestic violence case even if the victim didn’t ask them to or asks them not to. The reason why this happens is that if the abuser has broken the law, the prosecutor has a duty to the state to prosecute those who break the law. Even though you are the victim of the crime, technically the prosecutor represents the state’s interests, not yours.

It may be possible that your state or county has a specific policy against victimless prosecution (where the victim doesn’t want to cooperate) - I do not know. If there is no clear policy on this question, whether they go forward may be determined by various factors such as how much other evidence they would have against the abuser without the victim’s testimony – such as a police officer’s testimony, medical records from the hospital, witnesses’ statements, etc. – whether they can subpoena the victim to testify, etc.

You may decide to talk to the detective and/or the prosecutor to express your preference about them not arresting him or pressing charges but be careful not to lie to the police (or prosecutor) since you wouldn’t want to be charged with obstructing justice or some other crime. Perhaps you might consider talking this through with an advocate or other professional before deciding what to do. You can find information for local domestic violence programs in your state on our website [HYPERLINK]. You can also find contact information for free and paid attorneys. [HYPERLINK]