Can You Really Make a Citizen’s Arrest? Or Is That Just in the Movies?

When characters say they want to make a citizen's arrest in movies or TV shows, do you ever wonder exactly how something like that is even possible or if it's even real? After all, it usually happens in comedies.

Does a citizen's arrest even exist?

According to the How Stuff Works website, uniformed police officers and police departments didn't exist until about 200 years ago, so it was up to everyday people to make arrests. Despite its dark, heinous history in America, where self-appointed citizens would go so far as to viciously beat up or even murder who they determined to be lawbreakers, the law is still on the books in every state.

Originally, only white men could make citizen’s arrests. By the mid-1600s, many militias and city watchmen, especially in the South, used that power to intimidate and terrorize enslaved and free Black communities. This practice continued through the Civil War, the Jim Crow era, and even into the 1900s.

So, if you want to make a citizen's arrest, trying to stop someone from leaving before the police arrive could be considered false imprisonment or kidnapping, no? According to How Things Work, it really depends on what your citizen's arrest is and if anyone is injured.

Did you stop a bank robber, a fistfight, or a shoplifter?

READ ON: Is It Illegal to Flash Your Lights to Warn Drivers of Police Speed Trap?

According to the Find Law website, private citizens can make an arrest without a warrant by detaining criminals or telling law enforcement where to find the criminal.

Like a peace officer, you need probable cause to detain someone for a felony. However, if the alleged crime did not happen, the person making the arrest could become civilly and criminally liable. For example, you might face a lawsuit for wrongful arrest, use of force, or false imprisonment.

Also, citizen arrests involving misdemeanor offenses are only allowed if they involve disturbing the peace in public.