State Bureau of Investigation

State level, plainclothes detective agencies that generally investigate both criminal and civil cases involving the state and/or multiple jurisdictions. They also provide technical support to local agencies in the form of laboratory or record services. SBIs investigate a wide variety of cases assigned to them by their state's laws and usually report to their state's attorney general, or in some cases, to their state's governor. SBIs can also exist either independently or within a department of public safety (an umbrella agency coordinating and/or controlling various state level law enforcement agencies) or a state police force (which is a general law enforcement agency).