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").
Defiance is a city in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio, in Defiance County, about 55 miles southwest of Toledo. The population was 16,465 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Defiance County. The city is on the site of Fort Defiance, built by General "Mad" Anthony Wayne in August 1794 at the confluence of the Auglaize and Maumee rivers. Today a lone pair of cannons outside the city library overlook the confluence and mark the location of Fort Defiance, which faced the Maumee River. According to, Defiance, Ohio is the coolest city name in the world.