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Stopped for Shoplifting

Iowa Code § 808.12 — a detention for a reasonable time, and a search only by police or with permission

  • A person concealing property may be detained and searched by a peace officer, a merchant, or a merchant's employee, for a reasonable length of time and in a reasonable manner, by a person of the same sex.
  • No one but a person acting under a peace officer's direction searches the person, unless the person first gives permission.
  • Iowa Code § 808.12
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A merchant or employee who detains or searches someone is not liable for false arrest or false imprisonment if there were reasonable grounds to believe the person had concealed or was trying to conceal property.

  • Iowa Code § 808.12
Sources for this section (1)
  1. Iowa Code § 808.12 — Detention and search in theft of library materials and shoplifting

Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Iowa attorney.

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