§ 11-16-01 — Duties of the state's attorney

1. The state's attorney is the public prosecutor, and shall:
a. Attend the district court and conduct on behalf of the state all prosecutions for
public offenses.
b. Institute proceedings before magistrates for the arrest of persons charged with or
reasonably suspected of public offenses when the state's attorney has
information that such offenses have been committed, and for that purpose, when
the state's attorney is not engaged in criminal proceedings in the district court, the
state's attorney shall attend upon the magistrates in cases of arrests when
required by them except in cases of assault and battery and petit larceny.
c. Attend before, and give advice to, the grand jury whenever cases are presented
to it for consideration.
d. Draw all indictments and informations.
e. Defend all suits brought against the state or against the county.
f. Prosecute all bonds forfeited in the courts of record of the county and prosecute
all actions for the recovery of debts, fines, penalties, and forfeitures accruing to
the state or to the county.
g. Deliver duplicate receipts for money or property received in the state's attorney's
official capacity and file copies thereof with the county auditor.
h. On the first Monday of January, April, July, and October in each year, file with the
county auditor an account, verified by the state's attorney's oath, of all money
received by the state's attorney in an official capacity in the preceding three
months, and at the same time, pay it over to the county treasurer.
i. Give, when required and without fee, the state's attorney's opinion in writing to
the county, district, township, and school district officers on matters relating to the
duties of their respective offices.
j. Keep a register of all official business in which must be entered a note of each
action, whether civil or criminal, prosecuted officially, and of the proceedings
therein.
k. Act as legal adviser of the board of county commissioners, attend the meetings
thereof when required, and oppose all claims and actions presented against the
county which are unjust or illegal.
l. Institute an action in the name of the county to recover any money paid upon the
order of the board of county commissioners without authority of law as salary, fee,
or for any other purpose, or any money paid on a warrant drawn by any officer to
that officer's own order or in favor of any other person without authorization by the
board of county commissioners or by law.
m. Institute an action in the name of the county to restrain the payment of any money
described in any order or warrant of the kind described in subsection 13 when the
state's attorney secures knowledge of such order or warrant before the money is
paid thereon.
n. Assist the district court in behalf of the recipient of payments for child support or
spousal support combined with child support in all proceedings instituted to
enforce compliance with a decree or order of the court requiring such payments.
o. Institute proceedings under chapter 25-03.1 if there is probable cause to believe
that the subject of a petition for involuntary commitment is a person requiring
treatment.
p. Institute and defend proceedings under sections 14-09-12 and 14-09-19 and
chapters 14-15, 27-20.1, 27-20.2, 27-20.3, 27-20.4, and 50-01 upon consultation
with the human service zone director or the commissioner of the department of
health and human services or designee.
q. Act as the legal advisor and represent a human service zone as set forth in a plan
approved under section 50-01.1-03. The state's attorney within the human service

zone, by way of agreement, shall designate a singular state's attorney's office,
within or outside the human service zone, to act as legal advisor of the human
service zone. The host county state's attorney shall serve as the legal advisor if
no agreement is reached. The agreement may not limit a state's attorney's
individual discretion in court filings and representation.
r. Act as the legal advisor and represent the human service zone regarding
employer actions, including grievances and appeals, taken against the human
service zone team member. The state's attorney of the county by which the
human service zone team member is employed shall act as the legal advisor of
the human service zone, unless a different agreement is established by the
affected state's attorney.
2. The state's attorney may not require any order of the board of county commissioners
to institute an action under subdivision l or m of subsection 1.