WASHINGTON — Editor's note: The above video is from March 6, 2022.
Members of a trucker convoy in D.C. have been recorded talking about issuing citizen's arrests against officers and other drivers, a leader of one group later said the idea of the citizen's arrests was posed as a question regarding the constitutionality of the road blockades by the Metropolitan Police Department and is not a goal of the convoy.
But what exactly is a citizen's arrest and when is it legal?
According to the Cornell Law School, a citizen's arrest is an arrest made by a private citizen, not a police officer or other law enforcement.
The answer to when it is legal to conduct a citizen's arrest differs depending on which state you are in.
According to the Code of the District of Columbia § 23–582, a citizen's arrest can only be made by a private person who has probable cause to believe the person being arrested is committing a felony or in aid of an officer or special policeman, or other person authorized by law to make an arrest.
When a citizen's arrest happens, the private person must deliver the person arrested to a law enforcement officer without "unreasonable delay."
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