Refused a Criminal Case: Three Remedies After a No-Case Decision

Getting a refusal notice — or no answer at all — is the first wall many victims and their families hit. This article sets out the three routes: internal reconsideration, procuratorate filing supervision, and private prosecution, plus the deadlines and evidence that decide the outcome.

1. The Starting Point: A Refusal Notice

Many victims and their families assume that once the file is handed to the police, a case simply opens. In fact the police must first review the report and only open a case where there are facts of a crime requiring criminal responsibility; where there is no criminal fact, or the facts are clearly trivial, they issue a decision not to open a case and notify the complainant of the reason. An even more common scenario is silence: the material is accepted, a receipt is issued, and then nothing happens for months. The classic mistake at this point is to treat “no case” as “the matter is over”, and to drift into repeated petitioning, personal connections and online posting — burning every deadline that the legal process still offered.

2. Distinguish “Not Accepted” from “Not Opened”

The two lead to different remedies. “Not accepted” usually means the matter falls outside the agency's jurisdiction, the material is incomplete, or it is plainly not a criminal case — typically resolved by transferring it to the competent authority or asking for supplements. “Not opened” is a substantive judgment on whether a case should be filed, and the law expressly gives the complainant a right to request reconsideration. So the first step after receiving a document is to read its exact name, the issuing unit and the date, and to keep every paper trace: the report receipt, the case-registration form, the acknowledgement slip. Oral answers prove almost nothing later; put everything in writing — get a receiving stamp for hand-delivered documents, use EMS with the tracking slip for mail, and keep screenshots and reference numbers for online submissions.

3. Route One: Reconsideration and Review Inside the Police

Under the Criminal Procedure Law and the Provisions on the Procedures for Handling Criminal Cases by Public Security Organs, a complainant dissatisfied with a refusal may apply to the deciding organ for reconsideration within seven days of receiving the notice; the organ must decide within thirty days and serve the decision in writing. If still dissatisfied, the complainant may apply to the next-higher public security organ for review within seven days of receiving the reconsideration decision, and that organ must likewise decide within thirty days. The two key words are “seven days” and “in writing”. Seven days is a statutory window; miss it and later procuratorate supervision is still available but carries far less weight. A written application with a receipt is the only way to fix the procedure in place. The application should not merely say “I demand a case be opened”; it should answer the stated grounds of refusal point by point and add evidence and leads that go to the elements of the offence.

4. Route Two: Asking the Procuratorate to Demand Reasons

The Criminal Procedure Law provides that where a victim believes the police have failed to open a case that should be investigated and raises it with the procuratorate, the procuratorate shall require the police to explain the reasons for not opening it; if it finds those reasons untenable, it shall notify the police to open the case, and the police shall do so upon receiving the notice. This is the strongest external supervisory channel available to a victim, but its effect depends on the quality of what is submitted. An effective submission in practice is: one page for the facts and timeline, one page matching evidence to each element of the offence, plus the refusal notice, the reconsideration and review decisions, and a full evidence list — with an explicit request that the police be required to explain the refusal in writing and be notified to open the case. If the procuratorate finds the police reasons sound, ask for a written reply so that a later complaint has a foundation. Note also that opening a criminal case is a criminal-justice act, and courts generally do not accept administrative suits against it; suing the police over a refusal usually goes nowhere, and reconsideration plus procuratorial supervision is the real path.

5. Route Three: Private Prosecution in Limited Cases

The Criminal Procedure Law allows a victim who has evidence that the accused infringed his personal or property rights and should bear criminal responsibility — where the police or procuratorate decline to pursue it — to bring a private prosecution in court. Cases prosecutable only on complaint, and minor cases where the victim has evidence, also fall within that scope. This route suits only cases with relatively complete evidence and clear facts, because the private prosecutor carries the burden of proof with no investigative powers, and both the cost of obtaining evidence and the risk of losing are markedly higher. In practice it is more realistic as a fallback that creates leverage for filing and negotiation than as a first choice.

6. Four Traps That Sink Most Attempts

First, dressing a commercial dispute up as fraud. Where a contract, equity or loan dispute has a genuine transactional basis, partial performance, or an available civil remedy, the police will usually refuse on the ground that it is an “economic dispute”. What strengthens such a file is not repeating “he cheated me” but evidence pointing to intent to permanently deprive: a fabricated counterparty, forged guarantees, disappearance after payment, funds spent on personal consumption. Second, arguing emotion instead of elements — a file full of grievance with nothing matched to the offence. Third, ignoring deadlines, especially the seven days for reconsideration and for review. Fourth, treating petitioning as procedure: it can create pressure, but it cannot replace reconsideration, review or filing supervision, and over-reliance on it usually means missing the decisive windows. It is also worth knowing that a refusal is not a permanent end — new facts and evidence allow a fresh report, and higher-level or procuratorial involvement can restart the matter.

7. In Short

A refused report is a procedural problem — not a matter of character, and not a matter of luck. Read the document carefully, count the deadlines, then move step by step through reconsideration, review and procuratorial supervision, assess private prosecution where it fits, and keep strengthening the evidence. That is the most reliable path for a victim. How far to go depends on the strength of the evidence and on the economic and time cost of the case; a full evidentiary and procedural assessment before formally starting is worth the effort.

※ This article is general legal information, not legal advice on any specific matter. For your individual case, please consult a lawyer.