Legal question – I’ll try to keep it short while hitting the salient points.
Let’s say A and B have a verbal dispute in a public place. After B leaves, A phones police, and complains about B’s behavior. Police stop B’s car on the highway, and inform B of A’s accusations. B is sent a summons to appear on a charge of Disturbing the Peace, a misdemeanor. B incurs certain expenditures of time and money, including traveling a considerable distance to court in another county, entailing a day off work, child care, etc.
A does not appear in court, the prosecutor says he has no witnesses for the prosecution, the judge, without ado, dismisses the case. Does B have a legitimate civil case against A for frivolously causing monetary loss, anxiety, emotional distress, etc? Needless to say, this occurred in BFE.
B would not have a very good case if there was, in fact, a dispute, even if A spun it a bit in his or her favor. If, however, A just made up the whole thing or really twisted the facts unfairly, there might be something to it. Successful cases are very rare.
Any police officer that is going to put out an APB on someone and charge them with a misdemeanor because of a verbal dispute in a public place reported by the second party probably carries their lone bullet in their breast pocket.
It’s a reference to Deputy Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show. Andy was the Sheriff and he was a sensible fellow. Barney was wound way too tight, was too invested in the importance to his authority, didn’t think things through well, and was kind of a klutz. Andy allowed him to carry a gun, but he only got one bullet and he had to keep it in his shirt pocket. Everyone was safer that way.