Which statement is true regarding dismissal?

• A. The peace officer may request the dismissal.
• B. The clerk may dismiss a case unilaterally.
• C. Only a prosecutor can request a case be dismissed.
• D. The judge may dismiss without a request.

Answer: (C)

The key idea here is who has the formal power to end a case. In most clerk-certification contexts, the decision to end a prosecution rests with the state, represented by the prosecutor. The prosecutor can file a motion or notice to dismiss the charges (often called nol pros), effectively stopping the case. Peace officers do not have authority to dismiss charges on their own, and clerks do not have the power to terminate a case unilaterally. While a judge can dismiss a case, that action is typically not a free-standing, unilateral move by the judge without a filing or motion backing it; in this framework, the fact that the prosecutor can request dismissal is the central, controlling point. So, the statement that only a prosecutor can request a case be dismissed best reflects how dismissal is commonly handled.