When police officers make an arrest, they are required to follow strict legal guidelines. If those rules are not followed, the arrest itself may be unlawful, which can put the entire case into question. Determining whether an arrest was legal depends on several factors, including probable cause, how the stop occurred, and whether your rights were respected.
Probable Cause
To legally arrest someone, an officer must have probable cause. This requirement comes from the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures.
Probable cause exists when an officer has reasonable grounds to believe that a crime has been committed and that the person being arrested was involved. This does not require absolute proof. Officers may rely on observations, witness statements, patterns of behavior, or circumstantial evidence.
Because probable cause is based on what the officer reasonably believed at the time, an arrest can still be lawful even if later evidence proves the person is innocent. For example, if a witness provides information that later turns out to be false, the arrest may still be valid if the officer reasonably believed the information when making the arrest.
Detained or Arrested
There is an important difference between being detained and being arrested.
A detention occurs when an officer briefly holds someone for questioning. This is intended to be short and limited in scope. Officers often detain individuals to investigate suspicious behavior or clarify a situation before deciding whether an arrest is warranted.
During a detention, officers may perform a pat-down if they believe the person could be armed or dangerous. If, during that pat-down, they feel an object that could be a weapon, they are permitted to retrieve it. Officers may also use tools such as drug-sniffing dogs, metal detectors, or database searches for outstanding warrants.
If probable cause is established during the detention, the officer may then make an arrest and take the person into custody.
Miranda Rights
Once a person is arrested and placed into custody, law enforcement must advise them of their Miranda rights before conducting a custodial interrogation.
These rights include the right to remain silent and the right to an attorney. Anything said after waiving these rights may be used in court.
If officers fail to properly advise someone of their rights before questioning, statements obtained during that interrogation may be excluded from evidence. However, the arrest itself is not automatically unlawful simply because Miranda rights were not read unless questioning occurred without them.
What You Can Do If You Believe the Arrest Was Unlawful
If you believe your arrest violated your rights, contact an attorney as soon as possible. A lawyer can review the circumstances of the arrest, determine whether proper procedures were followed, and advise whether evidence may be suppressed or the case dismissed.
In some situations, an unlawful arrest may also give rise to a civil rights claim.
If you’ve been arrested, Mercy Bail Bonds can help. Call us at (727) 856-7775 to get the process started and return home as quickly as possible. We are available 24/7 to help.