Scribd
Upload
417 views

Citizens Arrest

1) A citizen's arrest can only be made legally if the person to be arrested is committing a crime in the citizen's presence, the citizen has personal knowledge that the person committed a crime, or the person has escaped from prison. 2) The citizen making the arrest must inform the person of the intention to arrest them and the cause of the arrest, unless the crime is being committed in their presence or the person is resisting arrest. 3) The citizen is obligated to immediately deliver the arrested person to the nearest police station, and use of force should only be to the reasonably necessary extent for apprehension. Excessive force can result in the citizen being charged.

Uploaded by

Lansing
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
417 views

Citizens Arrest

1) A citizen's arrest can only be made legally if the person to be arrested is committing a crime in the citizen's presence, the citizen has personal knowledge that the person committed a crime, or the person has escaped from prison. 2) The citizen making the arrest must inform the person of the intention to arrest them and the cause of the arrest, unless the crime is being committed in their presence or the person is resisting arrest. 3) The citizen is obligated to immediately deliver the arrested person to the nearest police station, and use of force should only be to the reasonably necessary extent for apprehension. Excessive force can result in the citizen being charged.

Uploaded by

Lansing
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

MEL STA.

MARIA | How (not) to perform a 'citizen's arrest' - Hint: Do NOT do what


they did to Vhong
By: Atty. Mel Sta. Maria
January 31, 2014 2:55 PM
InterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5
Atty. Mel Sta. Maria is the resident legal analyst of TV5. He is Dean of the FEU
Institute of Law. He also teaches at the Ateneo School of Law, and daily co-hosts
the program 'Relasyon' on Radyo Singko 92.3 News FM.
Don't be too eager to make a "citizen's arrest". You might just be the one getting a sixmonth jail term for making an unlawful arrest under Article 269 of the Revised Penal
Code.
Worse, if you inflicted serious physical injuries while making the "arrest" - which
turned out to be unlawful - and you detained the person, regardless of the period of
time, before delivering him to the police station, you can be charged with illegal
detention, or commonly known as kidnapping under Article 267 (3) of the Revised
Penal Code. The penalty is reclusion perpetua which means a jail term for life.
The news reports about this whole Vhong Navarro mauling have brought to fore this
right to make a citizen's arrest. It was reported that a number of people went to the
Forbeswood Condominium to make a citizens arrest on Navarro because of an alleged
attempted rape on Deniece Cornejo. But when Navarro was brought to the police
station, he was already seriously battered.
At this time, let's leave the resolution of that case to the authorities. Let's just talk
about the right of ordinary citizens to make a citizens arrest.
When can an ordinary citizen make a legal citizen's arrest?

According to our Rules of Court, he/she can do so when, in his/her presence, the
person to be arrested, has committed, is actually committing, or is attempting to
commit an offense (hc-ac-ac).
Also, a citizen's arrest may be done when, after the offense has been committed, the
one arresting has personal knowledge of facts and circumstances (pkfc) that the
person to be arrested committed it. Lastly, anyone may arrest a convict who has
escaped from prison.
Some more important points. The one making the citizen's arrest must inform the
person of the intention to arrest him and the cause of the arrest (ia-ca) unless the
crime is being committed in front of the citizen or he/he is in hot pursuit of the
offender or the one being arrested violently resists the arrest. It is also the legal
obligation of the arresting citizen to immediately deliver the person arrested to the
nearest police station. If this is not done, the crime of unlawful arrest or slight illegal
detention might just be committed by the people making the arrest. The latter crime
is punishable by imprisonment of about 10 years maximum under our law.
Were any of these circumstances present when Vhong Navarro was "arrested"? Let's
just wait for the outcome of the investigation.
For all those who might be the victims of an illegal citizen's arrest, do not forget to
also immediately file a countercharge either for unlawful arrest or illegal detention
against those who apprehended you once they deliver you to the police station. You
must not stay passive. You must assert also that a serious crime was inflicted on you.
Turn the tables on your apprehenders immediately.
How about the force required to make a citizen's arrest? Is that even legal? And if it is,
to what extent?
Generally, there should be no exertion of physical force in making a citizen's arrest.
But anyone making an arrest, provided it's a valid one, must prepare for it because,
by nature, nobody would want to be arrested. Resistance is expected. If force is to be

used at all, it should be only to the extent reasonably necessary for the apprehension.
An arresting citizen has no right to maul and beat up a person while arresting him.
Under our criminal laws, any serious injury made by one on another will always be a
crime unless the injuries to another were a result of self defense on the part of the
injuring party. If there were more than four well-built men who "arrested" only one
individual, would the claim of self defense by these overpowering men be believable?
And if the answer is a "no", should not these abusive men, once they get to the police
station to deliver the "arrested," be arrested themselves for committing the crime of
serious physical injuries. The mere sight of a hapless and battered arrested person
is enough personal knowledge that an offense has just been committed in justifying a
warrantless arrest or even a "citizen's arrest".
Following the developments of Vhong Navarro's mauling case may indeed have some
useful purpose for all of us, after all. Considering the issues involved - propriety of a
citizen's arrest, use of brute force, police negligence or incompetence, the adequacy
of our justice system, attempted rape or possible criminal frame-ups, conspiracies we might learn a thing or two about our own rights and on the possible ways to
protect ourselves should these situations, God forbid, happen to any of us.

You might also like