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Being Arrested

KRS 431.025 — told of the intention to arrest and the offense, with no unnecessary force

  • A peace officer may arrest on a warrant, or without one for a felony committed in the officer's presence or on probable cause to believe the person committed a felony.
  • Without a warrant, an officer may also arrest for a misdemeanor committed in the officer's presence, and for DUI on probable cause.
  • KRS 431.005
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  • The person making an arrest tells the person of the intention to arrest, and of the offense.
  • An arrest is made by restraint, or by submission to custody in the arrester's actual presence.
  • No unnecessary force or violence is used in making an arrest.
  • KRS 431.025

Release before trial. A person charged with an offense is released on personal recognizance or an unsecured bail bond, unless the court decides that will not reasonably assure appearance, or that the person is a flight risk or a danger to others; then the court sets conditions.

  • KRS 431.520

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.

  • Miranda v. Arizona
  • County of Riverside v. McLaughlin
  • Riley v. California
Sources for this section (6)
  1. KRS 431.005 — Arrest by peace officers -- By private persons
  2. KRS 431.025 — Notice of intention to arrest -- Act of arrest -- Force
  3. KRS 431.520 — Release on personal recognizance or unsecured bail bond -- Conditions of release
  4. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966) — Right to remain silent and to counsel during custodial interrogation
  5. County of Riverside v. McLaughlin, 500 U.S. 44 (1991) — Probable cause review generally within 48 hours of a warrantless arrest
  6. 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 Kentucky attorney.

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