How to make a Legal Citizen's Arrest
Prepared by Lee Street Management
PP
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| By
law a citizen's arrest can be made under the following
circumstances: |
Any
person may arrest without warrant anyone who is in the
act of committing an arrestable offense or suspected of
being in the act of committing such an offense.
Where an arrestable offense has been committed any person
may arrest without warrant anyone who is guilty of of
the offense or suspected of being guilty of it.
An arrest is not to be considered lightly since it is
effectively restraining someone from his or her liberty.
You do not have a duty to arrest someone, but you do have
the power to do so. You can can decide whether or not
to exercise that power and if you choose not to use it
you are not committing an offense.
It must however, be proved that the suspect intended to
commit theft and that he/she appropriated the property
with the intention to permanently deprive the owner of
it. So you must be sure that the person has knowingly
taken the goods from your premises with no intention of
paying for them or returning them. If you have no doubt
that a crime has been committed, then you have the power
to make an arrest.
The following checklist of important rules has been compiled
with the help of local police and law enforcement officials.
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- You must see the person take an
item of personal property and attempt to leave the
premises without permission or without paying. Make
sure they still have the stolen property on their
person and they have not passed it to an accomplice
or discarded it in fear that you have been watching
them.
- You must maintain uninterrupted
surveillance. For example, if you suspect thief or
other category of criminal passed behind fixtures
or other visual obstructions, or in any way goes temporarily
out of your sight, do not proceed with the arrest.
- Approach the suspect and identify
yourself. For example: "I am the owner of that....property,"
then state positively a set phrase, such as "You
have taken an item for which you have not paid. Will
you please return to the premises with me."
- When you stop a suspect, do not
use force unless it is absolutely necessary. Section
3 of the Criminal Law Act states that you are entitled
to use "reasonable" force to arrest someone.
But the word "reasonable" is highly debatable.
The deeper your pockets, the more highly debatable
that word becomes.
- When returning to the premises,
you should walk slightly behind the suspect making
sure that the thief does not attempt to discard the
item.
- On return to the premises, call
the police immediately. Allow them to conduct the
interview. DO NOT try to interview the suspect yourself.
- If possible have a witness present
at all times, particularly if a male member of staff
is arresting a female suspect of vice versa. A simple,
but false counterclaim can turn a good arrest into
an opportunistic thief's windfall.
- Keep the suspect under constant
supervision to prevent him or her from harming themselves
or someone else and to prevent disposal or destruction
of evidence. If two or more persons have been arrested,
keep them apart and out of sight from each other until
the police arrive.
- Under no circumstances should you
search the suspect. Your can ask them to turn out
their pockets or bags, but if they refuse to do so,
do not carry out the search yourself, even if they
invite you to do so.
- When the police arrive tell them
exactly what happened. Do not exaggerate or elaborate.
After the police have taken the suspect into custody,
make thorough notes of everything that happened, including
what the person, and the police said to you, then
sign the notes with the date and time. Get any witnesses
to review the notes and sign them too.
- Treat all suspects with consideration
and respect at all times.
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| The
rules for other types of crimes are essentially the same.
Just be aware that if your suspect has committed a crime
of aggression or violence, you are at a much higher risk
of danger. It is possible that the arrest could escalate
into a severe confrontation, perhaps resulting in serious
physical injury. Unless you are quite capable of such
confrontation or you perceive the crime so henious that
allowing the suspect to escape is unthinkable, be prepared
to let him or her get away. Call the police immediately. |
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