# Citizen's Arrest? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 14, 2012, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784 "2012-02-14T02:42:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablo_O_Malley)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/1 "2012-02-14T02:42:45Z")
:D:(😕:eek::):dubious:;)has anyone here ever made one? or seen one? or heard of one? is there really such a thing? you would think with all the media out there , there would’ve been at least one famous case of it or is it just one of those things that everyone thinks exists, but really doesn’t, like a battlefield promotion?:smack:⭕p ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/2 "2012-02-14T03:01:46Z")
We have some this one many times and I think Cecil even did a column on it. You have to do a search for the past ones. Citizen’s arrest are a very real right with some restrictions. It would be insane f they weren’t allowed. Anyone can do them but the concept isn’t useful just for regular people. Security guards have to do citizen’s arrests as part of their job because they aren’t true law enforcement. Real law enforcement also needs them if they are out of jurisdiction but still need to intervene in a crime. The basic requirements are that you have to stop a crime (usually a felony) in progress and detain the person in question with reasonable force only while the police arrive. Battlefield promotions aren’t fake either BTW or at least they have been used during some wars. ---
**Author:** ![SCSimmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e495f1/32.png) [@SCSimmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCSimmons)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/3 "2012-02-14T03:25:16Z")
[Here you go.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2993/) It’s a Staff Report, so not as definitive as one of **Cecil** ’s columns, but it says that > [@](#): > > Every state recognizes some form of citizen’s arrest. North Carolina calls it “detention,” which means you can hold a person at the scene of the crime but you can’t take them elsewhere by force. Many states have expanded the right of citizen’s arrest to all misdemeanors, and have special statutes that cover citizen’s arrests by merchants. ---
**Author:** ![SCSimmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e495f1/32.png) [@SCSimmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCSimmons)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/4 "2012-02-14T03:31:50Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > Battlefield promotions aren’t fake either BTW or at least they have been used during some wars. [And are currently in use by the U.S. Army in Afghanistan and Iraq.](http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/06/army_battlefield_062909w/) ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/5 "2012-02-14T03:44:53Z")
Yeah, I [took part in one](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14764554&postcount=11) a couple of years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/6 "2012-02-14T11:10:14Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > or is it just one of those things that everyone thinks exists, but really doesn’t, like a battlefield promotion? The son of a friend of my father received a battlefield promotion. He was an officer too. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/7 "2012-02-14T14:17:00Z")
This topic has been beaten to death several times here. The short answer is, you better be DAMNED SURE that the person you are arresting committed a crime requiring arrest - usually, it’s a VERY good idea that you personally witnessed the crime. It is very dangerous to your future and freedom to simply detain someone on someone else’s sayso. [http://m.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/legal-experts-want-citizens-arrest-law-to-empower-citizens-discourage-vigilantes/article1881550/?service=mobile](http://m.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/legal-experts-want-citizens-arrest-law-to-empower-citizens-discourage-vigilantes/article1881550/?service=mobile) When I was a security guard, way back when, we were told to observe and report. Do not try to stop or manhandle anyone. You have nothing but a fake uniform. they could have anything, and could be crazy enough to use it. Observe, report, and leave it to the real police to use force. Usually, just yelling gets someone to stop what they are doing and run away, which was about as much as we could do. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/8 "2012-02-14T15:29:35Z")
Shoplifters caught in the act are generally asked to go to a room – managers office or security room and wait there for the arrival of the police. I’d guess that’s the most frequent form of citizen’s arrest. For a more dramatic example see the video in [this](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-17015287) news report. ---
**Author:** ![Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablo_O_Malley)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/9 "2012-02-14T17:01:51Z")
so it’s really a citizen’s detention, not an arrest, because they don’t really arrest anyone one of those phrases that doesn’t mean what it says like paper clip…its not made of paper, its made of metal, it should be called a metal clip not a paper clip…or hot water heater, if the water’s hot there’s no need to heat it, so it should be a cold water heater or just a water heater ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/10 "2012-02-14T17:05:39Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > so it’s really a citizen’s detention, not an arrest, because they don’t really arrest anyone Sure, it is. [Dictionary.com](http://Dictionary.com)’s definition of “[arrest](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/arrest)” > [@](#): > > to seize (a person) by legal authority or warrant; **take into custody** ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/11 "2012-02-14T17:07:18Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > so it’s really a citizen’s detention, not an arrest, because they don’t really arrest anyone > > one of those phrases that doesn’t mean what it says > > like paper clip…its not made of paper, its made of metal, it should be called a metal clip not a paper clip… Really? It’s a paper clip because it secures papers together… ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/12 "2012-02-14T18:01:41Z")
Can’t link to it at work (maybe later when I get home) but there was a recent Cracked article on this topic. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/13 "2012-02-14T18:21:21Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Can’t link to it at work (maybe later when I get home) but there was a recent Cracked article on this topic. This, perhaps?: [7 Steps to Making an Ill-Advised Citizen's Arrest | Cracked.com](http://www.cracked.com/blog/7-steps-to-making-ill-advised-citizens-arrest/) ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/14 "2012-02-14T18:26:40Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > This, perhaps?: [http://www.cracked.com/blog/7-steps-to-making-ill-advised-citizens-arrest/](http://www.cracked.com/blog/7-steps-to-making-ill-advised-citizens-arrest/) Yep. ---
**Author:** ![brewha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@brewha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brewha)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/15 "2012-02-14T18:34:24Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > .or hot water heater, if the water’s hot there’s no need to heat it, so it should be a cold water heater or just a water heater A device to heat cold water is called a water heater. Anyone calling it a hot water heater is misusing the phrase. A hot water heater is a device that heats with hot water. If you’ve ever been in an old building with radiators, you’ve seen a hot water heater. The heater in your car runs hot water (well actually antifreeze) through a heater core - which is just a radiator and air blowing over the heater core is heated and used to heat the interior of the car. If you call that cylinder in the basement of your house a hot water heater, you’re doing wrong. Sorry for the hijack. But, it’s a pet peeve and I’m doing my best to fight ignorance here. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/16 "2012-02-14T18:37:40Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Really? It’s a paper clip because it secures papers together… Yes. Paper Clip is not redundant in the way Frozen Tundra is. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/17 "2012-02-14T19:04:49Z")
> [@Laggard](#): > > Yes. Paper Clip is not redundant in the way Frozen Tundra is. But on some hot summer days the tundra gets warm and mushy, at least the top layer… ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/18 "2012-02-14T21:55:00Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > But on some hot summer days the tundra gets warm and mushy, at least the top layer… Hmmm. When that happens i believe it stops being tundra. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/19 "2012-02-14T21:55:24Z")
California Penal Code 837 [link](http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=pen&group=00001-01000&file=833-851.90) > [@](#): > > 1. A private person may arrest another: > 2. For a public offense committed or attempted in his presence. > 3. When the person arrested has committed a felony, although not > in his presence. > 4. When a felony has been in fact committed, and he has reasonable > cause for believing the person arrested to have committed it. Better be sure you know wtf you are doing, though. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2012, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784/20 "2012-02-14T23:05:08Z")
> [@Laggard](#): > > Hmmm. When that happens i believe it stops being tundra. Only the subsoil remains frozen year round, the surface thaws. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizens-arrest/612784.md?page=2)