| name | close-case |
| description | The assistant should use this when the user asks to close, finalize, force-close, wrap up with a final conclusion, or produce final Detective case findings. It closes only after proof readiness or explicit force approval. Do not use for status-only review (review-board), further investigation (investigate), blocker discussion (discuss-case), new case creation (open-case), or pre-case scoping (brainstorm). |
Close Case
Close a Detective MCP-backed case only through MCP tools. Follow ../references/detective-core-protocol.md for proof completion semantics, canonical state, StopHook deactivation, handoffs, and export policy.
<HARD_GATE name="closure-authorization">
Normal closure requires detective_completion_gate approval and a final summary naming conclusion, confidence, key evidence chain, completed coverage, and unresolved caveats. If the gate is blocked, do not close; present blockers and offer continue, discuss, or force-close options.
</HARD_GATE>
<HARD_GATE name="force-close-approval">
force=true requires explicit user approval for a partial or forced close in the current conversation. Include the force reason and unresolved caveats in the summary; never infer force approval from frustration, silence, or a generic request to wrap up.
</HARD_GATE>
Before normal closure, verify exactly one confirmed hypothesis, at least one confirmed evidence node with a direct `supports` edge to it, questions and alternatives resolved/rejected/stale, actions done/cancelled, and coverage complete. Use `detective_completion_gate` as the readiness authority; use `detective_evaluate_proof` only when preserving a durable final proof snapshot.
When a SetGoal or equivalent goal tool is available, treat `detective_completion_gate` approval as the goal-completion gate. Session goals are orchestration hints and do not replace MCP closure state.
<HARD_GATE name="stop-fallback-deactivation-on-close">
When closure is completed, blocked waiting for user force-close approval, or paused by user request, emit <DETECTIVE-STOP-FALLBACK status="inactive" case-id="<case_id>" reason="<closed|blocked|pause>">. This only disengages the transcript-activated fallback and must not be written to .detective/ files.
</HARD_GATE>
Required Inputs
Obtain or draft case_id, summary, approved_by (user role/name if provided, else assistant after gate approval), and force=false unless explicitly approved.
Exact Workflow
- Read final state:
detective_case_status(case_id="<case id>")detective_graph_overview(case_id="<case id>")detective_coverage_status(case_id="<case id>")detective_completion_gate(case_id="<case id>")
- If a durable final proof snapshot is requested or needed for final reporting, call:
detective_evaluate_proof(case_id="<case id>", summary="<draft final summary>")
- If the completion gate is blocked, present blockers and route:
- proof/coverage/action gaps → offer
/detective:investigate;
- missing user decision/scope/caveat approval → offer
/detective:discuss-case;
- explicit partial-finalization request → ask for force-close approval.
- For normal closure:
detective_close_case(case_id="<case id>", summary="<final summary>", approved_by="<approver>", force=false)
- For explicit partial/forced closure:
detective_close_case(case_id="<case id>", summary="<summary including caveats and force reason>", approved_by="<approver>", force=true)
- After successful close, export:
detective_export_markdown(case_id="<case id>")detective_export_mermaid(case_id="<case id>", diagram="full", focus_node_id=null)- Optional focused diagram only if useful:
detective_export_mermaid(case_id="<case id>", diagram="hypothesis-chain", focus_node_id="<node id>")
- Emit inactive marker with reason
closed, blocked, or pause as applicable:
<DETECTIVE-STOP-FALLBACK status="inactive" case-id="<case_id>" reason="closed"><DETECTIVE-STOP-FALLBACK status="inactive" case-id="<case_id>" reason="blocked">
Final Summary Template
Conclusion: <what happened / answer>
Confidence: <low|medium|high> — <why>
Key evidence chain:
- <confirmed evidence> → supports → <confirmed hypothesis/conclusion>
Coverage completed:
- <areas>
Unresolved caveats:
- <caveat or "none known">
Closure type: <normal|forced partial>
Response Format
**Case closed**: <case_id>
**Closure type**: <normal|forced partial>
**Conclusion**: <one paragraph>
**Confidence**: <level and reason>
**Caveats**: <bullets>
**Goal completion**: <completion gate passed / forced with explicit approval>
**Stop fallback**: <inactive marker emitted with reason>
**Exports**:
- Markdown: <path from MCP>
- Mermaid: <path from MCP>
