Walk It Through: The Arrest On The Sidewalk
An Oregon arrest after a traffic stop, from the license to going limp, the force used, and 60 days in custody.
Stopped for a broken taillight, a driver cannot find the license and is cited for it.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One stop that became an arrest on a warrant. Whether the stop was lawful, the warrant itself, a civil claim against the agency, and the exceptions that extend the 60 days are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Deadly physical forceForce a peace officer may use only when it is objectively reasonable to believe the person poses an imminent threat of death or serious physical injury and it is necessary to defend against it, or to arrest or prevent the escape of someone the officer has probable cause to believe committed a violent felony.
- Objectively reasonableThe test for any physical force by an Oregon peace officer: it has to be objectively reasonable, under the totality of the circumstances the officer knows, to believe the person poses an imminent threat of physical injury, or that force is needed for a lawful arrest or to prevent an escape.
- Reasonable suspicionThe suspicion of criminal activity that circumstances arising during a traffic stop have to give before the officer may inquire into them.