Being Arrested
725 ILCS 5/107-2 — a warrant, or reasonable grounds to believe an offense is being or was committed
- The officer has a warrant commanding the arrest.
- The officer has reasonable grounds to believe a warrant for the person's arrest has been issued, in Illinois or elsewhere.
- The officer has reasonable grounds to believe the person is committing or has committed an offense.
Who handles this in Illinois: Illinois State Bar Association, Illinois Lawyer Finder; and legal aid programs and the state offices, listed in the Illinois directory.
On any of those grounds a peace officer may arrest. Whenever an officer arrests someone, the officer asks whether they have children under 18 living with them who may be neglected because of the arrest, and helps place the children with a relative or another responsible person the arrestee names.
After a lawful arrest, an officer may reasonably search the person and the area within their immediate presence, to protect the officer, prevent an escape, or find the fruits or evidence of an offense.
- No officer may search a vehicle, its contents, the driver or a passenger solely because of a seat belt violation.
- Any person may arrest another on reasonable grounds to believe an offense other than an ordinance violation is being committed.
Several rules about an arrest come from the Supreme Court of the United States rather than from this state's code. It has held that before questioning a person in custody, officers must warn that the person may remain silent, that anything said can be used against them, and that they have a right to a lawyer, appointed if they cannot afford one; that a person arrested without a warrant is entitled to a prompt decision by a judge on whether there was probable cause; and that officers generally need a warrant to search the data on a phone taken from a person they arrested. Those holdings are a floor: a state's own constitution and statutes can give more protection than they do, never less.
Sources for this section (6)
- 725 ILCS 5/107-2 — Arrest by peace officer
- 725 ILCS 5/107-3 — Arrest by private person
- 725 ILCS 5/108-1 — Search without warrant
- Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966) — Right to remain silent and to counsel during custodial interrogation
- County of Riverside v. McLaughlin, 500 U.S. 44 (1991) — Probable cause review generally within 48 hours of a warrantless arrest
- Riley v. California, 573 U.S. 373 (2014) — Police need a warrant to search a phone seized during an arrest
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Illinois attorney.