Levels of Detainment & Terry Stops:
There are different steps that officers take leading up to arrest. Many officers (and some prosecutors) seem to be confused as to if a Terry Stop qualifies as a detainment. It does. We will detail them below-
1. Consensual Encounter:
Any officer can walk up to any person at any time and ask them any questions they want. They can ask them for ID. But what is important to remember is that during a consensual encounter, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO SAY NO AND WALK AWAY! You are not obligated to answer questions or hang around. You are always free to go during a consensual encounter. When an officer approaches you, you can ask if you are being detained or are free to go. If they say you are not being detained, this is a consensual encounter. U.S. v. Sokolow, 490 U.S. 1 (1989) also known as the Common Law Right of Inquiry, is what defines a consensual encounter. This permits an officer or agent to engage any citizen in a purely voluntary conversation (i.e. “May I speak with you a moment? Do you need any help? How long have you been here?”). In these cases, a citizen must be free to terminate the conversation at any time and go his or her way with no restrictions.
2. Terry Stop:
A Terry Stop is defined as “a brief, temporary involuntary detention of a person suspected of being involved in criminal activity for the purpose of investigating the potential criminal violation." In order to lawfully conduct a Terry stop, a law enforcement officer must have “reasonable suspicion,” which has been defined as “articulable facts that would lead a reasonable officer to conclude that criminal activity is afoot. More than an
unsupported hunch but less than probable cause and even less than a preponderance of the evidence.” The most important thing to take away from a Terry Stop is that YOU ARE NOT FREE TO GO AND THAT THE OFFICER MUST HAVE REASONABLE ARTICULABLE SUSPICION OF CRIMINAL ACTIVITY TO FRISK YOU! Exercising a constitutionally protected right is NOT RAS in it of itself. There have to be other factors!
3. Forced Detainment:
Reasonable suspicion is the legal standard by which a police officer has the right to briefly detain a suspect for investigatory purposes and frisk the outside of their clothing for weapons, but not drugs. While many factors contribute to a police officer’s level of authority in a given situation, the reasonable suspicion standard requires facts or circumstances that would lead a reasonable person to believe that a suspect has, is, or will commit a crime.While reasonable suspicion does not require hard evidence, it does require more than a hunch. A combination of particular facts, even if each is individually insignificant, can form the basis of reasonable suspicion. For example, police may have reasonable suspicion to detain someone who fits a description of a criminal suspect, a suspect who drops a suspicious object after seeing police, or a suspect in a high crime area who runs after seeing police. Many times a terry stop and forced detainment blur together into the same event. If you are being detained legally and the officer has RAS, you are legally required to identify yourself. That does NOT mean you have to turn over a drivers license. Read more about identifying yourself here.
4. Probable Cause Arrest:
At this point the officer has probable cause, and may place you under arrest. Your Miranda rights are in full effect. Stay silent, ask to contact an attorney, and wait for them to arrive before speaking.
1. Consensual Encounter:
Any officer can walk up to any person at any time and ask them any questions they want. They can ask them for ID. But what is important to remember is that during a consensual encounter, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO SAY NO AND WALK AWAY! You are not obligated to answer questions or hang around. You are always free to go during a consensual encounter. When an officer approaches you, you can ask if you are being detained or are free to go. If they say you are not being detained, this is a consensual encounter. U.S. v. Sokolow, 490 U.S. 1 (1989) also known as the Common Law Right of Inquiry, is what defines a consensual encounter. This permits an officer or agent to engage any citizen in a purely voluntary conversation (i.e. “May I speak with you a moment? Do you need any help? How long have you been here?”). In these cases, a citizen must be free to terminate the conversation at any time and go his or her way with no restrictions.
2. Terry Stop:
A Terry Stop is defined as “a brief, temporary involuntary detention of a person suspected of being involved in criminal activity for the purpose of investigating the potential criminal violation." In order to lawfully conduct a Terry stop, a law enforcement officer must have “reasonable suspicion,” which has been defined as “articulable facts that would lead a reasonable officer to conclude that criminal activity is afoot. More than an
unsupported hunch but less than probable cause and even less than a preponderance of the evidence.” The most important thing to take away from a Terry Stop is that YOU ARE NOT FREE TO GO AND THAT THE OFFICER MUST HAVE REASONABLE ARTICULABLE SUSPICION OF CRIMINAL ACTIVITY TO FRISK YOU! Exercising a constitutionally protected right is NOT RAS in it of itself. There have to be other factors!
3. Forced Detainment:
Reasonable suspicion is the legal standard by which a police officer has the right to briefly detain a suspect for investigatory purposes and frisk the outside of their clothing for weapons, but not drugs. While many factors contribute to a police officer’s level of authority in a given situation, the reasonable suspicion standard requires facts or circumstances that would lead a reasonable person to believe that a suspect has, is, or will commit a crime.While reasonable suspicion does not require hard evidence, it does require more than a hunch. A combination of particular facts, even if each is individually insignificant, can form the basis of reasonable suspicion. For example, police may have reasonable suspicion to detain someone who fits a description of a criminal suspect, a suspect who drops a suspicious object after seeing police, or a suspect in a high crime area who runs after seeing police. Many times a terry stop and forced detainment blur together into the same event. If you are being detained legally and the officer has RAS, you are legally required to identify yourself. That does NOT mean you have to turn over a drivers license. Read more about identifying yourself here.
4. Probable Cause Arrest:
At this point the officer has probable cause, and may place you under arrest. Your Miranda rights are in full effect. Stay silent, ask to contact an attorney, and wait for them to arrive before speaking.
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