# Citizen's Arrest??

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/53987>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [February 11, 2001, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/53987 "2001-02-11T03:41:57Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Torgo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@Torgo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Torgo)\
**Post date:** [February 11, 2001, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/53987/1 "2001-02-11T03:41:57Z")

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Okay you haughty smartasses, just what the hell is a “citizen’s arrest” anyway? Is this for real? Can I actually approach somebody engaging in something illegal, wrestle him/her to the ground and bleat “CITIZEN’S ARREST!!” and this somehow translates into a legal and proper way to detain somebody? If it is I need to know ‘cuz I got a mean itch to DO SOME ARRESTIN’…

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**Author:** ![Glitch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/0ea827/32.png) [@Glitch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glitch)\
**Post date:** [February 11, 2001, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/53987/2 "2001-02-11T03:47:02Z")

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Here is a thread on this very subject.

[http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=59385](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=59385)

To sum up

1. The rules on what you can and cannot do vary greatly from jurisdiction to jurisdication.
2. The level of evidence varys greatly from jurisdication to jurisdication.
3. The level of crime you can arrest somebody for varys from jurisdiction to jurisdication.

All that being said, generally a private citizen may arrest another citizen if the suspect commits a felony in their presence, or in some cases if they have reasonable cause that the person commited a felony (in some cases, minor offenses are also allowed but must occur in the presense of the arresting citizen). It essentially removes any possibilty of being arrested for “wrongful imprisionment”. It does not give you immunity from civil or criminal charges resulting from excessive force.

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**Author:** ![DaveRaver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daveraver/32/1078_2.png) [@DaveRaver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaveRaver)\
**Post date:** [February 11, 2001, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/53987/3 "2001-02-11T03:47:10Z")

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Yes, this is a citizen’s arrest for repeating a thread. I’m holding you here until Manhattan or Chronos come along. 😛

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**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\
**Post date:** [February 11, 2001, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/53987/4 "2001-02-11T03:48:34Z")

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Are you actually serious??? Maybe you should go re-read the posts on the front page.