Lawyer Tips: How To Handle Unlawful Arrests

Every individual has a right towards respect for security and liberty. It is unarguable that nowadays, safeguarding individual rights is becoming more exploitable and sometimes intangible. Yet, as demonstrated by human rights advocates, arrests and imprisonments remain widespread, even without justifiable suspicion and without proper judicial remedies to the victims involved.

In the event of such unreasonable and unconstitutional deprivations of individual freedom, victims are often stripped of access to either lawyers or their own families. Aside from that, they are also psychologically traumatized and even others are suffering from inhumane treatments. You don't want to get caught in these wrongful arrests. Thus, it would be best to be guided on what to do when faced with such circumstances.

Read on below for some tips from a professional Indianapolis accident attorney on how to handle unwanted arrest.

Know Your Rights

Anyone detained, whether wrongful or not, must always be told the reason for their detention. This doesn't have to be addressed instantaneously, but policemen should say a justification as early as possible. Otherwise, the arrest could be considered illegal.

Moreover, due to human right laws, when arrests are made, the arrested person have the following rights:

Be treated respectfully
Talk to the police officer accountable for their benefit
See written documents regulating their privileges and how they've been treated
Have someone informed of their detainment – although they could not do the call themselves
Get professional counsel and seek advice with a solicitor

Whether any of the appeals mentioned above are overlooked, writing that down on the custody record is imperative.

If you're taken into custody, the police will only be able to arrest you for up to 24 hours. For a much more severe arrestable offense, the length of detention can be extended to a maximum of 36 hours. It's essential to note that that your custody record should include the exact time of detainment.

Be Mindful Of Your Offense

There are two kinds of offenses under the constitution as it stands today:

Arrestable Offenses: These usually focus on more severe offenses, including vehicle theft, burglary, an outbreak of violence, etc.
Non-arrestable Offenses: These are offenses that are less serious, including electronic content alteration, failure to stop your car when ordered to do so, and most driving violations.

Then again, when the police have a “justifiable reason,” or in line with the following situations, the police may apprehend and detain someone:

When they believe that infringement of peace and order will happen
When a constitutional court issued a warrant for the arrest
Where a person commits any arrestable offense
When a person is about to commit any arrestable offense
When a person is blameworthy of any arrestable offense

Be Familiar With The Charges

In case things got worse, and you need to sue a police officer, these are the charges that you can file.

False Imprisonment: If you're the subject of wrongful detention, the hours spent in custody is classified as false imprisonment. Since your rights were infringed and restricted your free movement, you become a victim of a criminal offense, which is civilly wrong. The potential damages earned will also be based on how long you are held in custody against your will.

Assault: When you're the victim of wrongful detention, you can immediately report an assault. That is, if you had been restrained or if any unreasonable force is inflicted upon you during the arrest.

But, when a law enforcement officer contests the claim and interpretation of events, the argument will rely on the testimonies of witnesses. If a lawsuit of this sort were brought to trial, clinical evidence of injury sustained are required.

After this, the result would rest with whoever the judge and jury believed. And for you to prevail, it would rely heavily on the extent of your injuries.

Know How To Win The Case

When contemplating a decision of wrongful arrest rule, a court had to determine if the law enforcement officer charged has “justifiable reason” to care about what they were doing at the time of disclosure.

Once the detention has taken place, the court decides whether:

The policemen deemed it necessary and no other alternative are suitable at that time.
As for what was reported, the police officers believed at that time to make the arrest.

Never Neglect The Timelines

Like with every claim and proceeding, there are restriction and time frames that should be conformed to. There is a twelve-month restriction for reporting a violation of your fundamental rights, a three-year duration for neglect, assault cases, and injury (including psychiatric injury issues), and a six-year maximum for anyone who raises a complaint of unlawful arrest, misfeasance, or misconduct.

That's why filing arguments as soon as practicable is the key to launching your claims as your memories of the shreds of evidence are still fresh.

The Bottomline

If you are a victim of an unlawful arrest, take heed of the tips mentioned above. Adapt the suggestions and never let anyone trample on your right.

However, before pursuing a trial path, you must consider the validity of your claim carefully. Finding a qualified legal expert 's assistance is often a smart option.