Each investigation is unique, but generally when a person makes a police report the investigation is assigned to the area detective. If there is enough information in the initial report the detective simply sends the case to the District Attorney's Office for a complaint (charges) against the suspect. At this time the charges are either filed or the case is sent back to the detective for further investigation. If there is a need for added investigative work, the assigned detective must complete the work and resubmit the case.

The law is not indifferent to the victim's feelings but there are some legal issues to be dealt with. When an arrest is made, the police must submit all the pertinent information relating to the charges within a 48 hour period. If there is needed follow-up that cannot be completed in the 48 hour time frame then the suspect is released and the process starts again. For this reason we often will not make an arrest prior to having all the facts on a particular case.

There is a common misnomer with most people that the police file charges against a person. What actually takes place is a given case is submitted to the District Attorney with a request for charges. The District Attorney then either approves or denies the requested charge(s). The police can and do recommend what charges might be filed but the District Attorney always has the final say.