She was sitting in the hallway of the courthouse, trembling.
Three weeks prior, her ex-husband had been arrested after she dialed 911. Now she was being ordered to give testimony. She didn’t want to. She just wanted it to stop. She said to the prosecutor: I want to drop the charges.
The prosecutor stared at her and told her something that she had never thought would happen to her.
“You can’t.”
This is one of the moments that occur daily in American courtrooms. And even the victims themselves and the majority of the population are not aware of how the system really functions until they find themselves in that hallway.
The Biggest Misconception in Criminal Law
The majority of the population assumes that when a victim changes his/her mind, the case disappears. Such a belief is false, and it brings actual confusion, actual fear, and even actual danger.
This is the fact on the ground: the victims never initiate criminal charges. The government does.
When an individual contacts the police due to an assault, robbery, or a domestic violence event, it is the state (or the federal government) that establishes whether charges should be filed or not. Not the victim. The victim is a witness. An important one, yes. But yet a mere spectator of the law.
The case becomes The State v. [Defendant’s Name]. Notice the name of whom is not in that title.
Why the Government Takes Over
This design is intentional.
Imagine what would be the case when the victims were in complete control. The victim might be pressured, threatened, or manipulated by an abuser to drop charges on each occasion. This cycle of abuse would never be broken. The fact that these dangerous individuals would have the opportunity to walk free was because they could manipulate the single individual who stood between them and punishment.
Abusers are deprived of that leverage by the state.
The law helps to keep the victims out of that impossible position by ensuring that the government is the one to prosecute them. When the abuser tells them to drop the charges or I will, the victim can say, truthfully, I can not. It’s out of my hands.”
And that is not a liability in the system. This is how the system should operate.
So What CAN a Victim Actually Do?
There are several things that a victim can do that influence a case even though they cannot do it on their own.
Refuse to cooperate. The victim has a choice of not talking to prosecutors, not appearing in hearings, or has a choice that he or she does not to be involved anymore. This complicates the task of the prosecution. In most instances, where the testification of the victim is the sole actual evidence, this may result in a dropped case. However, prosecutors may still subpoena a victim, which implies that they can legally compel them to appear in court.
Write a letter to the prosecutor. The victims may provide a so-called victim impact statement or a letter of desire. Those wishes do not necessarily have to be adhered to by the prosecutors, but they are usually considered by the prosecutors, particularly in the lower cases.
Hire their own attorney. A victim may hire a private attorney who would be able to talk to the prosecution and push in a certain direction, such as a diversion program rather than serving prison time.
Speak at sentencing. When a conviction occurs, victims tend to be allowed to speak before a sentence is passed. This is real power. A victim seeking leniency can change the amount of time a defendant serves.
When Prosecutors Drop Cases Because of Victims
Here is where it gets nuanced.
A prosecutor can dismiss the case if a victim is utterly incooperative. This happens a lot. This is not because the victim dropped charges, but rather the prosecution simply does not have a solid enough case to prevail at trial.
Prosecutors hate losing. They track win rates. Hostile or uncooperative witnesses are dangerous cases. A DA office can decide that the resources are not worth it in non-violent and less significant cases.
However, in serious offenses such as murder, aggravated assault, or abuse of children, prosecutors will proceed without the victim cooperating. They may use:
- Prior 911 call recordings
- Medical history and images of wounding.
- Neighborhood or bystander witness testimony.
- Self-incriminating words of the defendant to the police.
- Security footage
The less cooperative victim will not be able to eliminate the case because the crime is more serious.
Domestic Violence Cases: A Special Category
Domestic violence cases should have their own section, as in most states, they are subject to different rules.
There are numerous jurisdictions with the so-called mandatory arrest laws and no-drop policies. The police are required to make an arrest based on probable cause, and the prosecutors are required to proceed with charges without regard to what the victim may say subsequently under these rules.
Why? Since statistics indicated an alarming trend. The victims of abusive relationships would call the police when they are in a crisis, and they would later withdraw the call, in most cases due to fear, economic need, affection, and direct threats. In the absence of no-drop policies, abusers continued to be released. Continued calls to the same address still occurred. Some victims ended up dead.
No-drop policies were developed to prevent that cycle.
In the case of domestic violence, it should be known that you dialed the police; even when you change your mind the next day, the case might proceed without your assistance. The state will make you a witness anyway.
This comes out as cruel to certain victims. It also saves lives.
What Happens If a Victim Lies to Help the Defendant?
This is what no one speaks about.
A victim does not always simply remain quiet. They go further. They take the statement back, tell them that they were making things up, or that they cannot remember what was said. When such occurs, the prosecutors scrutinize the truthfulness of the original statement keenly.
If a victim is called to testify in favor of a defendant to whom he or she lies under oath, he or she may be accused of perjury, and this is a felony in most states.
In case the victim is threatened or paid off by the defendant and then alters his narrative, the victim (obstruction) and the defendant (witness tampering) can be charged with serious crimes.
Attempts to eliminate a case through lying during court are usually counterproductive. Badly.
Real Talk: What Should You Do If You’re in This Situation?
In case you have reported a crime and now have doubts, the following is practical advice:
Talk to an advocate first. A majority of the counties have a victim advocate office, usually located within the DA building, which provides free, confidential assistance. They are able to describe your rights without coercion.
Do not lie. Subpoenaed and telling a lie, you are the one under charge. It is not worth it.
Understand that your fear is valid. In case you are afraid of retaliation, inform the prosecutor. Courts may provide protective orders, relocation assistance, and so on.
Know that silence has limits. You are entitled not to indemnify yourself, but victims are not defendants. In case of being subpoenaed as a witness, remaining silent without legal grounds may lead to contempt of court.
Get a lawyer if you feel pressured. When someone (including the family of the defendant) is urging you to dismiss a case, you might be a witness to a crime in progress. A lawyer can protect you.
The Emotional Reality Nobody Prepares You For
It is the section that is omitted by most legal commentators.
Being a victim of crime is traumatizing in itself. It is tiresome to begin with a criminal prosecution on top of that. Most victims claim that they feel they are not heard, as though they are a mere instrument that the state employs to make a conviction.
That feeling is real. The system is not ideally structured based on the comfort and healing of the victims. It is modeled based on the state’s interest and the safety of the people.
Yet victims are not as powerless as they believe. Prosecutors talk to victims. They hear the desires of the victims. A large number of cases are being diverted into counseling programs, plea bargains, or the low-level charges are being dismissed when the victim makes a genuine request to do so.
You are not powerless. You are simply not the one with the gavel.
Quick Summary: What’s True and What’s a Myth
MYTH: The victim has the right to drop the charges whenever they wish to. TRUTH: The criminal charges can only be dismissed by the prosecutor.
MYTH: When a victim refuses to testify, the case is automatically terminated. TRUTH: Prosecutors may continue to utilize additional evidence and may subpoena the victim.
MYTH: The manipulation of the story protects the defendant. TRUTH: It may make you guilty of perjury and the defendant guilty of obstruction.
MYTH: The victims are powerless. TRUTH: The cooperation, statements, and face-to-face communication with the prosecutors make the victims always a part of the case.
Final Word
The woman at that court passage later gave evidence. Not because she desired her ex-husband to be put in prison. This is because the advocate who sat beside her made her realize something valuable.
This was not about revenge. It was about a pattern. Three previous calls to the same address. Two other women before her. A system that was familiar with this story.
She did not drop the charges. She could not. And yet she had a part in the ending of it. She requested treatment instead of prison time. The prosecutor agreed.
That is not powerlessness. It is a voice that is used deeply within a system that is difficult to comprehend until an individual opens up to be truthful.
And now you come to know how it really works.
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