A citizen comes to court to complain about a neighbor's dog running at large, but does not want to sign a written complaint. No complaint is filed. May the municipal court hear this case? Why or why not?

• A. No, because no complaint has been filed, so the court has no jurisdiction.
• B. Yes, the court can hear it if the citizen makes an oral complaint under oath at the hearing.
• C. Yes, the court can hear it if the judge allows the case to proceed without a written complaint.
• D. No, but the case can be scheduled anyway.

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is that a municipal court’s authority to hear a criminal matter is triggered by a filed complaint or information charging the offense. Without a complaint on file, there is no case before the court for the judge to hear, so the court lacks jurisdiction to proceed. The fact that the citizen does not want to sign a written complaint does not create a valid proceeding on its own; the filing of a complaint is the procedural step that authorizes the court to act. Allowing an oral complaint at the hearing or proceeding without a written complaint would bypass this requirement, so those routes aren’t what the process permits. Therefore, with no complaint filed, the court cannot hear the case.