This page explains the Ohio crime of "interfering with civil rights," how a private citizen can ask that criminal charges be considered, and why doing this does not resolve your own traffic ticket.
Filing a complaint against an officer does not stop or dismiss your traffic case. If you miss your court date, the court can issue a supplemental citation, summons, or warrant, and can declare your license forfeited. Traf.R. 7(A); R.C. 2935.26(F); R.C. 4510.22. If you think evidence in your case was obtained illegally, the tool inside your case is a motion to suppress, filed before trial. Traf.R. 11(B)(2)(a), (C).
No public servant, using the authority of the office, may knowingly deprive (or conspire or attempt to deprive) any person of a constitutional or statutory right. The offense is called interfering with civil rights and it is a first-degree misdemeanor, not a felony. R.C. 2921.45.
A private citizen does not file a criminal complaint directly. Instead:
You may file an affidavit (a sworn written statement) "charging the offense committed" with a reviewing official: a judge of a court of record, a prosecuting attorney, or a magistrate. R.C. 2935.09(A), (D).
The affidavit is reviewed "to determine if a complaint should be filed by the prosecuting attorney." R.C. 2935.09(D).
You may also file it with the clerk of a court of record outside the reviewing officials' business hours; the clerk forwards it. R.C. 2935.09(D).
For a misdemeanor, the judge, clerk, or magistrate may issue a warrant or a summons. It is not automatic. R.C. 2935.10(B).
Requirements and forms vary by court. Ask the clerk of the municipal or county court for the area where the conduct happened.
The federal crimes in 18 U.S.C. 241 and 242 are prosecuted by federal prosecutors, not by private citizens. The U.S. Supreme Court has held that a private citizen "lacks a judicially cognizable interest in the prosecution or nonprosecution of another." Linda R.S. v. Richard D., 410 U.S. 614 (1973). You may report conduct to federal authorities, but you cannot bring those charges yourself.
Asking for money because an official violated your rights is a civil lawsuit, separate from any criminal charge. It has its own rules and deadlines. Talk to a lawyer about that.
R.C. 2921.45: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2921.45
R.C. 2935.09: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2935.09
R.C. 2935.10: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2935.10
R.C. 2935.26: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2935.26
R.C. 4510.22: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-4510.22
Ohio Traffic Rules (Traf.R. 7, 11): https://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/docs/LegalResources/Rules/traffic/Traffic.pdf
Linda R.S. v. Richard D., 410 U.S. 614 (1973), CourtListener: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/8991786/linda-r-s-v-richard-d/
Last verified: 2026-10-13