This name is given to the private person upon whose complaint or Information a criminal accusation is founded and whose testimony ia mainly relied on to secure a conviction at the trial; in a more particular sense, the person who was chiefly Injured, in person or property, by the act constituting the alleged crime, (as in cases of robbery, assault, criminal negligence, bastardy, and the likej and who instigates the prosecution and gives evidence.
Law Dictionary – Alternative Legal Definition
The primary witness for the prosecution whose testimony is the foundation for the charges brought by the prosecution and is an essential component of proof offered to make the prosecution’s case.