Citizen's arrest?

[B yond]

I'm curious about citizen's arrests in CA.

A friend of mine was recently attacked by a crazy homeless woman in a public restroom. He called the cops, but by the time they got there she'd disappeared. This got me thinking about citizen's arrests and I realized I don't know anything about them in CA.

disclaimer: I'm not a LEO and I don't pretend to be. I have no intention of making a citizen's arrest myself, ever. I'd just like to know some more about the legality of it and what it allows the average citizen to do.

-Can a non-LEO making a Citizen's Arrest physically restrain the arrestee until police arrive?
-If the citizen has a CCW, and is making a citizen's arrest for a violent crime or believes the arrestee to be dangerous, could the arrestee be held at gunpoint?
-What is the process for making a citizen's arrest?
-Can a citizen forcefully enter private property to make a citizen's arrest?

CPC references would be greatly appreciated.

[Fjold]

If the citizen has a CCW, and is making a citizen's arrest for a violent crime or believes the arrestee to be dangerous, could the arrestee be held at gunpoint?

No, unless the CCW holder was in immediate fear for his/her life

[B.D.Dubloon]

I wanna take some guesses:

1)Yes
2)Yes but better be damn sure, seems like a good way to risk losing a ccw
3)Tell the person they are under arrest?
4)Yes, for a felony only though

No FUDing me or anything, these are just guesses

[strangerdude]

To my understanding you can only make a citizen arrest If the crime Is a felony.

[Sacmedic]

Byond-

A citizen's arrest can be tricky, but most of the relevant Penal Code sections are between 837 and 851. I'll answer your questions below:

1. Yes. Be sure the violation your arresting them for is actually a violation. Don't want to get a false imprisonment beef for yourself.

2. Unless you are in fear for your life or grave bodily injury I would not unholster your CCW weapon.

3. If you are making a citizen's arrest the arrrested person must be brought before a magistrate. The average citizen has no knowledge of how this is done. The safest and most efficient way to get this done is immediately after effecting the arrest contact the LE agency with jurisdiction and request a LEO respond. Explain to the dispatcher what has occured. The LEO will accept the arrest, if legitimate, and continue on from there.

4. Yes, a citizen may forcefully enter private property to effect an arrest if the offense is a felony. This is different than for peace officers who may do so for misdemeanors as well.

The bottom line to all of this is that you had better know the law very well if you ever go down this route. If you don't you may end up in a civil rights lawsuit without any legal assistance from the LE agency. After seeing how bad that is for a peace officer, I shudder to think how bad that'd be for you.

Sacmedic



Citizen's arrest?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm curious about citizen's arrests in CA.

A friend of mine was recently attacked by a crazy homeless woman in a public restroom. He called the cops, but by the time they got there she'd disappeared. This got me thinking about citizen's arrests and I realized I don't know anything about them in CA.

disclaimer: I'm not a LEO and I don't pretend to be. I have no intention of making a citizen's arrest myself, ever. I'd just like to know some more about the legality of it and what it allows the average citizen to do.

-Can a non-LEO making a Citizen's Arrest physically restrain the arrestee until police arrive?
-If the citizen has a CCW, and is making a citizen's arrest for a violent crime or believes the arrestee to be dangerous, could the arrestee be held at gunpoint?
-What is the process for making a citizen's arrest?
-Can a citizen forcefully enter private property to make a citizen's arrest?

CPC references would be greatly appreciated.

[Justin3]

Here is where I am unclear about the deal. What if they refuse and try to walk away, which is probably always.
Using any form of force might put you behind bars too right?

Cant we just Batman these guys and hit them on the head with a 2by4 and leave a note for the police?

[Sacmedic]

Justin,

You may restrain them, just be certain they've actually broken the law. Private security guards carry handcuffs and they are "citizen's" just like you. This is where the sticky "false imprisonment" issue comes up. LE have some protection against this type of claim but you the private citizen do not. If you do this right you're golden, do it wrong and you can get totally worked over by their lawyer. I'd definietly not do it if you have any question on this issue at the time the arrest is made.

Sacmedic

[code33]

Private Person's Arrest

837. A private person may arrest another:
1. For a public offense committed or attempted in his presence.
2. When the person arrested has committed a felony, although not
in his presence.
3. When a felony has been in fact committed, and he has reasonable
cause for believing the person arrested to have committed it.

839. Any person making an arrest may orally summon as many persons
as he deems necessary to aid him therein.

841. The person making the arrest must inform the person to be
arrested of the intention to arrest him, of the cause of the arrest,
and the authority to make it, except when the person making the
arrest has reasonable cause to believe that the person to be arrested
is actually engaged in the commission of or an attempt to commit an
offense, or the person to be arrested is pursued immediately after
its commission, or after an escape.
The person making the arrest must, on request of the person he is
arresting, inform the latter of the offense for which he is being
arrested.

844. To make an arrest, a private person, if the offense is a
felony, and in all cases a peace officer, may break open the door or
window of the house in which the person to be arrested is, or in
which they have reasonable grounds for believing the person to be,
after having demanded admittance and explained the purpose for which
admittance is desired.

845. Any person who has lawfully entered a house for the purpose of
making an arrest, may break open the door or window thereof if
detained therein, when necessary for the purpose of liberating
himself, and an officer may do the same, when necessary for the
purpose of liberating a person who, acting in his aid, lawfully
entered for the purpose of making an arrest, and is detained therein.

846. Any person making an arrest may take from the person arrested
all offensive weapons which he may have about his person, and must
deliver them to the magistrate before whom he is taken.

[Fire in the Hole]

It's no longer legally referred to as a Citizen's Arrest. The name and procedure have been changed to Private Person's Arrest.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A citizen's arrest is an arrest made by a person who is not acting as a sworn law-enforcement official.[1] In common-law jurisdictions, the practice dates back to medieval England and the English common law, in which sheriffs encouraged ordinary citizens to help apprehend law breakers.

Despite the practice's name, the arresting person is usually designated as any person with arrest powers, who need not be a citizen of the jurisdiction in which he is acting.

[I]This means a foreign national can make a Private Person's Arrest on a US Citizen.[/I]

Each state, with the exception of North Carolina, permits citizen arrests if the commission of a felony is witnessed by the arresting citizen, or when a citizen is asked to assist in the apprehension of a suspect by police. The application of state laws varies widely with respect to misdemeanors, breaches of the peace, and felonies not witnessed by the arresting party. American citizens do not carry the authority or enjoy the legal protections of police, and are held to the principle of strict liability before the courts of civil- and criminal law including but not limited to any infringement of another's rights.


Legal and political aspects:

A person who makes a citizen's arrest could risk exposing him or herself to possible lawsuits or criminal charges (such as charges of impersonating police, false imprisonment, kidnapping, or wrongful arrest) if the wrong person is apprehended or a suspect's civil rights are violated.

The level of responsibility that a person performing a citizen's arrest may bear depends on the jurisdiction.

You can count on being sued civilly by the "arrestee" if you lack probable cause, or reasonable articutable facts of the elements of the alleged offense. You may also be criminally charged for felony kidnapping, or assalut and battery, if you are obviously wrong about the arrest elements. I.e. A reasonable person should have known that the offense that they are making a Private Person's Arrest for, is not a crime.

The applicable CA Penal Code Statues:

834. An arrest is taking a person into custody, in a case and in
the manner authorized by law. An arrest may be made by a peace
officer or by a private person.

837. A private person may arrest another:
1. For a public offense committed or attempted in his presence.
2. When the person arrested has committed a felony, although not
in his presence.
3. When a felony has been in fact committed, and he has reasonable
cause for believing the person arrested to have committed it.

838. A magistrate may orally order a peace officer or private
person to arrest any one committing or attempting to commit a public
offense in the presence of such magistrate.

841. The person making the arrest must inform the person to be
arrested of the intention to arrest him, of the cause of the arrest,
and the authority to make it, except when the person making the
arrest has reasonable cause to believe that the person to be arrested
is actually engaged in the commission of or an attempt to commit an
offense, or the person to be arrested is pursued immediately after
its commission, or after an escape.
The person making the arrest must, on request of the person he is
arresting, inform the latter of the offense for which he is being
arrested.

844. To make an arrest, a private person, if the offense is a
felony, and in all cases a peace officer, may break open the door or
window of the house in which the person to be arrested is, or in
which they have reasonable grounds for believing the person to be,
after having demanded admittance and explained the purpose for which
admittance is desired.

845. Any person who has lawfully entered a house for the purpose of
making an arrest, may break open the door or window thereof if
detained therein, when necessary for the purpose of liberating
himself, and an officer may do the same, when necessary for the
purpose of liberating a person who, acting in his aid, lawfully
entered for the purpose of making an arrest, and is detained therein.

846. Any person making an arrest may take from the person arrested
all offensive weapons which he may have about his person, and must
deliver them to the magistrate before whom he is taken.

847. (a) A private person who has arrested another for the
commission of a public offense must, without unnecessary delay, take
the person arrested before a magistrate, or deliver him or her to a
peace officer.
(b) There shall be no civil liability on the part of, and no cause
of action shall arise against, any peace officer or federal criminal
investigator or law enforcement officer described in subdivision (a)
or (d) of Section 830.8, acting within the scope of his or her
authority, for false arrest or false imprisonment arising out of any
arrest under any of the following circumstances:
(1) The arrest was lawful, or the peace officer, at the time of
the arrest, had reasonable cause to believe the arrest was lawful.
(2) The arrest was made pursuant to a charge made, upon reasonable
cause, of the commission of a felony by the person to be arrested.
(3) The arrest was made pursuant to the requirements of Section
142, 837, 838, or 839.

849. (a) When an arrest is made without a warrant by a peace
officer or private person, the person arrested, if not otherwise
released, shall, without unnecessary delay, be taken before the
nearest or most accessible magistrate in the county in which the
offense is triable, and a complaint stating the charge against the
arrested person shall be laid before such magistrate.
(b) Any peace officer may release from custody, instead of taking
such person before a magistrate, any person arrested without a
warrant whenever:
(1) He or she is satisfied that there are insufficient grounds for
making a criminal complaint against the person arrested.
(2) The person arrested was arrested for intoxication only, and no
further proceedings are desirable.
(3) The person was arrested only for being under the influence of
a controlled substance or drug and such person is delivered to a
facility or hospital for treatment and no further proceedings are
desirable.
(c) Any record of arrest of a person released pursuant to
paragraphs (1) and (3) of subdivision (b) shall include a record of
release. Thereafter, such arrest shall not be deemed an arrest, but
a detention only.

[Fire in the Hole]

How to Make a Citizen's Arrest:

In many countries around the world, civilians are empowered to stop a perpetrator in the act of a serious crime and take the arrested to a courthouse or police station, or keep them from leaving until an officer of the law arrives. The conditions under which this is permitted vary from place to place, but in case you are ever in a situation where you can stop a criminal, you should know what your options are.

Identify yourself to the police when they arrive. When the police arrive, let them know who you are, what you saw, and why you held the suspect. Remember that you will probably need to be in court to provide eyewitness testimony for the crime, so stay calm and stick to the facts. Don't tell them what you think happened, tell them exactly what you saw and who you saw doing it.

Steps

Notify authorities if you can. Law enforcement officials strongly encourage citizens to phone in a complaint or tip rather than try to stop a crime themselves. You should carefully consider whether you're putting yourself or others in more danger than necessary by making a citizen's arrest. A citizen's arrest is only an emergency measure to stop a suspect until law enforcement officials can take matters into their own hands. If you think that the local police will be able to find the suspect, a citizen's arrest may not be necessary. With a detailed description and a license plate number, you can arm the police with the information they need to apprehend the suspect.
Evaluate the situation clearly. You could be legally liable if you make a false accusation or if you assault someone without a very strong reason to think they are in the middle of a crime. How close are you? Can you see what's going on? Do you know the participants? The best time to make a citizen's arrest is when you've witnessed the suspect in the very act of committing a crime, without any doubt as to who the suspect is and what they were doing.

Remember that things are not always what they seem. What you might interpret as a child being kidnapped could, in actuality, be a parent or a relative carrying away a child who's throwing a temper tantrum. In this case, assumptions about whether the person is related to the child (if, for example, the person is of a different race than the child, and/or is misinterpreted to look like a homeless individual) can result in legal action against you.
Consider the severity of the crime being committed. Citizen's arrest laws vary by the degree of the crime in suspicion. In many places, it must be a felony (usually a serious crime involving violence) in order to justify a citizen's arrest. You should know where the line is drawn in the country you're in when you witness the crime. Borderline crimes include vandalism and driving while intoxicated.

Say "Stop". Tell the suspect loudly and forcefully to stop what they're doing. Hold up your hand to indicate stopping. If they have a weapon, tell them to put it down (Think twice about making a citizen's arrest of an armed subject).

Tell the suspect that they're under citizen's arrest. Tell them that they're not allowed to leave until a police officer comes and that they can explain the situation to the police when they arrive. Be firm and matter-of-fact.

In the U.S., A Miranda Warning is only required if you are both detaining AND questioning the suspect simultaneously. You do not need to read a suspect their rights if you question then detain.
If the suspect tries to leave, think very carefully before physically restraining the suspect. Not only will you put yourself in physical danger, but you could be subject to legal liabilities for use of excessive force. You can only use enough force to restrain the suspect. If they manage to run away, then the arrest has not been completed. Also, note that in at least some countries it is illegal to lock up the suspect or tie him to something.
Remember that you have no right to question or search the suspect, or to seize any kind of evidence.

There is no legal requirement for a person upon whom a Private Person's Arrest is attempting to be affected by another Private Person, to submit voluntarilly to being restrained. Unlike an arrest by a Peace Officer; it is not against the law to resist a Private Person's Arrest.

Call local authorities. Get in touch with the local police department on the spot if you have a cell phone. Call your local emergency number e.g. 911.

[Fire in the Hole]

In a popular episode of the 1960s American sitcom "The Andy Griffith Show", a gas station attendant named Gomer Pyle discovers the power of citizen's arrest. After witnessing Barney commit the same traffic violation he had just been cited for, Gomer cries foul and exercises a citizen's arrest on Barney. While Gomer Pyle's intentions may have been honorable, the concept of citizen's arrest is not to circumvent legitimate law enforcement or arbitrarily detain people without proof of a crime. Today, citizen's arrest exists as more of an emergency or stop-gap power granted to ordinary citizens at the behest of law enforcement officers.

Citizen's arrest means that a private citizen has the right to detain suspected criminals until proper law enforcement personnel can assume custody. The practice can be traced back to English common law during the Middle Ages, although each country or state can modify the rules of engagement. During the earliest days of modern justice systems, performing a citizen's arrest was a much more common practice. Merchants would routinely detain shoplifters and thieves caught in the act, often bringing them directly to a local constable's office for trial. As criminals became better armed and law enforcement became more readily available, the popularity of citizen's arrest seemed to wane.

Modern law enforcement officers strongly discourage untrained civilians from making a citizen's arrest. The risk of bodily injury or death is much too high, and the average response time of trained police officers is significantly faster. But under certain circumstances, a citizen's arrest can provide enough time for the proper authorities to arrive. One of the main problems with a citizen's arrest, however, is the possibility of making a mistake. Unlike a failed attempt to resuscitate a victim through CPR, there is very little if any 'Good Samaritan' protection for private citizens who detain an innocent suspect.

One criteria for a legal citizen's arrest is the immediacy of the crime. The ideal circumstance is to catch the suspected criminal in the very act of committing a crime. A person witnessing a mugging can seize the mugger and hold him until a police officer arrives, for example.

Another scenario for a proper citizen's arrest would be a serious potential for a crime to be committed soon. If a person saw a masked man with a crowbar walking towards a vehicle, it can be reasonably assumed that a crime is about to take place. The witness can detain the masked man by making a citizen's arrest. This would still be true even if the 'crime' turned out to be a misunderstanding. If someone sees a man climbing through a broken window, he cannot be held responsible for false arrest if the man turns out to be the owner of the building who lost his keys.

Because the act of detaining an armed or physically powerful suspect can be extremely dangerous, police officers often suggest that citizens spend their time observing the suspect and the crime scene instead. If the witness can provide a physical description of the suspect or a license plate number, the police may be able to find the suspect themselves. The safer equivalent of a citizen's arrest is a signed statement, with the intention of pressing criminal charges later. Sometimes, a police officer will ask a witness or victim to tell the suspect that he or she has been placed under citizen's arrest. This gives the police more legal authority to detain the suspect until he or she can be properly processed into the legal system.

[Fire in the Hole]

To my understanding you can only make a citizen arrest If the crime Is a felony.

No. Misdemeanors and infractions are fair game.

I had to make my first one yesterday.

[Skunkwrks]

A citizen may make an arrest under two circumstances:

1.When the person arrest has committed a misdemeanor in his/her presence.

2.When the person arrested has committed a felony, although not
in his/her presence. The individual must have good cause to believe the person who is arrested has committed the offense.

Infractions are low level violations punishable by a fine, and citizens are not typically not responsible for enforcing these laws. Furthermore, a citizen cannot detain a suspect, only make an arrest (unless your a merchant or their representative).

When making a citizens arrest, your opening yourself up to lots of liability. Unless your job requires it, I wouldn't do it. I've made plenty of citizen's arrests, and you basically inform the individual that your making an arrest, what your arresting him/her for, and your authority to do so. I would also fill out a private party arrest form, and hand it to the police officer transporting the arrested individual.

[Ron-Solo]

To my understanding you can only make a citizen arrest If the crime Is a felony.

TOTAL FUD !

[Ron-Solo]

837. A private person may arrest another:
1. For a public offense committed or attempted in his presence.
2. When the person arrested has committed a felony, although not
in his presence.
3. When a felony has been in fact committed, and he has reasonable
cause for believing the person arrested to have committed it.

839. Any person making an arrest may orally summon as many persons
as he deems necessary to aid him therein.

841. The person making the arrest must inform the person to be
arrested of the intention to arrest him, of the cause of the arrest,
and the authority to make it, except when the person making the
arrest has reasonable cause to believe that the person to be arrested
is actually engaged in the commission of or an attempt to commit an
offense, or the person to be arrested is pursued immediately after
its commission, or after an escape.
The person making the arrest must, on request of the person he is
arresting, inform the latter of the offense for which he is being
arrested.

844. To make an arrest, a private person, if the offense is a
felony, and in all cases a peace officer, may break open the door or
window of the house in which the person to be arrested is, or in
which they have reasonable grounds for believing the person to be,
after having demanded admittance and explained the purpose for which
admittance is desired.

845. Any person who has lawfully entered a house for the purpose of
making an arrest, may break open the door or window thereof if
detained therein, when necessary for the purpose of liberating
himself, and an officer may do the same, when necessary for the
purpose of liberating a person who, acting in his aid, lawfully
entered for the purpose of making an arrest, and is detained therein.

846. Any person making an arrest may take from the person arrested
all offensive weapons which he may have about his person, and must
deliver them to the magistrate before whom he is taken.

This!