If you have been arrested, detained, or held against your will by the police, you might have been wrongfully arrested and should fight it. Whether it was a traffic stop or due to marijuana enforcement on the Nebraska Colorado border, you want to retain a lawyer who will help you fight for your rights.
These situations, along with many others, can be referred to as “false arrests” in civil lawsuits. You may be able to seek damages from those responsible if you have a lawyer that understands the law and has experience handling wrongful arrest cases in Nebraska.
Legal Definition of A Wrongful Arrest
A wrongful arrest is the unlawful restraint of a person’s freedom of movement. There are a few different instances in which this can occur:
- Someone is held against his or her own will; and/or
- Someone is taken into custody without legal justification to do so; and/or
- Someone is taken into custody without consent.
One thing to note is that this doesn’t just refer to police officers, it can include anyone.
If you believe that you have been wrongfully arrested, you (or your lawyer) have to show that:
- The plaintiff (the person you are suing) intended to confine you;
- The plaintiff was aware of the confinement;
- You did not consent to confinement;
- Nothing you did called for legal confinement.
This means that the person who committed the false arrest did so purposefully. In almost all cases involving police officers, security officers, and store owners, they intend to arrest you. Sometimes, however, the situation isn’t as clear. This could be a store manager locking a door without realizing someone was inside, for example. Consent isn’t unclear either - if someone turns themselves into the police and consents to being arrested, someone cannot later claim that they were falsely arrested.
The most common key to a wrongful arrest case is that final element: whether or not the arrest was legally justified. A warrant or a court order can justify an arrest. Another defense is that there was probable cause to arrest the person.
It is important to know that most people who actually do the arresting know the law and what they can and cannot do - but that doesn’t mean that they don’t mistakes or willfully go against the rules in situations where they don’t think they will be challenged.
Probable Cause and Wrongful Arrest
Probable cause refers to the fact that there are sufficient hints or facts that cause law enforcement to believe that the person arrested has committed or was committing a crime. There is some ambiguity to this definition, which is something lawyers will use in court. The main question in a wrongful arrest case is whether the facts at the time of the arrest would have led someone to believe that the person had committed a crime.
It does not matter if someone was guilty of an offense or whether or not they committed a crime, a wrongful arrest relies entirely on the facts that led to the arrest. Someone doesn’t have to observe the crime - information from a victim or an eyewitness can be enough to show probable cause and lead to an arrest.
Contact A Nebraska Lawyer Today If You Believe That Your Rights Were Violated
While, of course, it is better to have a lawyer at your side from the onset, if you believe that your rights were violated during a police investigation or after it, contact a lawyer today. Whether you were wrongfully arrested, mistreated by the police, or believe that there was a mistake made throughout the process, you deserve to be treated fairly. You want to find a lawyer that is experienced in dealing with the law and has your back – no matter what you have done in the past. A lawyer that has experience fighting back against a biased system is the one who is most likely to give you a positive outcome in your case.
Contact Stockmann Law today at (402) 884-1031 to get the representation you deserve.
