Britney Spears might've thought this battery case with her housekeeper would "go nowhere" -- but she's not out of the woods yet ... we're told it's now been handed over to prosecutors who will make the call on whether Britney is hit with a criminal charge.
Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the Ventura County Sheriff's Dept.'s wrapped up its investigation into Britney's housekeeper's claim of battery from last week and forwarded its findings to the Ventura County District Attorney's Office Friday.
Law enforcement at the Ventura County Sheriff's Dept. has told TMZ ... they routinely send such cases over to the D.A. for review, unless it's clear the case has no merit. In this case, there are 2 versions -- the housekeeper says Britney struck her in the arm, but Britney says all she did was swipe the phone out of her hand. The Sheriff doesn't know which version is true, so that's why it was forwarded on.
The law enforcement sources also tell us the house keeper suffered no physical injuries.
As we've reported, our Brit sources were confident nothing would come of this ... and that still may end up being true at the finish line ... but until then, it's a waiting game.
TMZ broke the story ... Britney got into a spat with the housekeeper after the housekeeper showed Britney pics of the dogs in distress. Britney was angry the housekeeper was taking photos inside her house, and she tried wrestling the phone away.
The housekeeper -- who had worked for Britney for years -- is no longer working for the singer.
BTW ... the dogs were returned last Friday after being in the care of Britney's dog sitter for 2 weeks.
Stay tuned ...