The contribution examines the appropriation of criminal justice made by middle sectors of south - central area in Chile. The period focuses on the 1830s to 1870s, when the judicial administration deepened its emphasis towards the containment of crime at the national level and, in specific, in this agro-livestock area. Following the review of 411 court records by interpersonal conflicts, it states that subjects involved in this kind of disputes opted for the prosecution when visualized the possibility of exploiting in their favor increasing persecutory action of judges.