The Becker County Attorney's Office is a full-time office and can only represent the County and perform duties
authorized by state statute. The County Attorney and assistants cannot give private legal advice to individuals about
legal problems or disputes with others. In order to obtain such private legal advice, an individual must contact a
private attorney. Refer to the Yellow Pages for a local attorney or contact the Minnesota Bar Association Referral
Service at (800) 292-4152 or visit the
MN Find a Lawyer website.
The county attorney cannot give legal advice to either landlords or tenants. The Attorney General's Office can
provide some direction for landlord/tenant disputes, (800) 657-3787.
If an individual is aware that a crime may have been committed, the information should be provided to the local
law enforcement agency, either a City Police Department or the County Sheriff, depending
upon where the crime occurred. A major responsibility of the county attorney is the decision whether or not to charge persons
with crimes, however, it is based upon investigations of law enforcement departments and other regulatory agencies.
Under some circumstances, the issuance of an insufficient funds check or an account closed check may constitute a
crime. In those cases, the County Attorney's Office or a city prosecutor may become involved. However, just as in the
case of any other crime, the offense must first be reported to the appropriate law enforcement agency who will work with
a victim to follow the necessary procedures.
Whenever federal welfare benefits are paid, the county attorney brings actions to obtain or enforce child support
obligations or to establish paternity of a child in order to obtain reimbursement of these public funds. Parents not
receiving federal welfare benefits may also apply for and receive these child support enforcement or paternity establishment
services, and should contact the Child Support Enforcement Office of the Becker County Human Services Department,
(218) 847-5628.
Many questionable business practices do not involve criminal acts, but a victim may have civil remedies. In these
situations, the County Attorney's Office cannot be involved, however, the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division may
be able to provide some advice, (612) 296-3353.
Some acts of consumer fraud are criminal and can be reported to a law enforcement agency as well. However, an initial contact
with the Consumer Protection Division of the Attorney General's Office may help an individual determine whether or not a
criminal investigation might be of any help.
Persons with judgments against them, including defendants ordered to pay restitution in criminal matters, may file
Satisfactions of Judgment with the District Court once the obligation has been paid in full. The County Attorney's Office
does not prepare such documentation, and the Satisfaction of Judgment must be signed by the judgment creditor, who is the
person to whom the judgment was owed. Satisfaction of Judgment forms are available through the Court Administration Office
in the Courthouse.
The Becker County Attorney's Office can only disclose those crimes that it prosecuted. Private individuals can generally
access more complete criminal records only through the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension in St. Paul, (651) 642-0672.
The county attorneys are prosecutors, and do not defend individuals in criminal cases. An individual must either hire one's
own attorney or apply for a public defender. One wishing to seek the appointment of a public defender should contact the
Court Administration Office.