Most everyone has heard of the term “citizen’s arrest”. But do you really know what it means? How about when you’re allowed to use it?
The statute describing the “citizen’s arrest” term, explains that in certain situations, citizens, (not a peace officer or other persons of the law), have the power to make an arrest of another citizen. It is when ordinary people detain a suspected criminal.
However, this rule does not mean that people can just freely arrest people and claim that they did it under the citizen’s arrest rule. There are some boundaries and regulations that people need to follow in order to refrain from civil or criminal liability.
A person can arrest someone that they reasonably suspect of committing a felony, even if the felony didn’t occur in the presence of the individual making the arrest. As long as a felony was committed and the person making the arrest knew of the crime, a reasonable suspicion about the identity of the suspect will justify their arrest.The felony must have actually occurred before an individual can make a citizens arrest. If the crime did not actually happen, the individual making the arrest could possibly face civil and/ or criminal charges.
A citizen may only arrest someone for a misdemeanor crime if they:
- personally witnessed the criminal behavior and the crime has just occurred
- that crime is going to cause a disturbance to the peace
Although the regulations involving a citizen’s arrest are less strict than those of an arrest by a peace officer, there is one regulation that they both obtain. That is, the use of force. Anyone carrying out a citizen’s arrest is prohibited from using any excessive force that is to be considered unreasonable and unnecessary for the arrest. States have different rules about the use of deadly force during a citizens arrest, and failure to comply with the law in this area can result in serious consequence.
People deciding to make a citizen’s arrest must use their judgment to decide the amount of force needed to detain the suspect. Every individual has the right to arrest wrongdoers in certain circumstances, but individuals making the decision to do so act at their own risk. Not only is apprehending a criminal dangerous, but failure to meet the legal requirements for a citizens arrest could have unfortunate consequences for the person making the arrest.
