In a criminal case, the state, through a prosecutor, initiates the suit, while in a civil case the victim brings the suit. Persons convicted of a crime may be incarcerated, fined, or both. Criminal defense attorneys represent clients who have been accused of committing a crime, and defend their rights at each stage of a misdemeanor or felony case -- from an arrest to an appeal after conviction. Criminal defense attorneys may be hired privately or provided by the government (called "public defenders").
Somonauk is a village in DeKalb County and LaSalle counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. The population was 1,295 at the 2000 census. A special census in 2008 set the population at 1,832. The DeKalb County portion of Somonauk is part of the Chicago–Naperville–Joliet Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the small portion that lies in LaSalle County is part of the Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area.