Is a Citizen's Arrest Legal?

If you have ever watched Arts &department store detective finds on his video
Entertainment's Dog: The Bounty Hunter on cable TVcamera that a shoplifter is smuggling items into a
and wondered how is it that the Dog, Duaneshopping bag with the intent to leave the store
Chapman, is allowed to make an arrest? Exactly whatwithout paying for the items. When the detective
is he doing to force an arrest? Under what authorityaccosts the perpetrator, brings them to the security
is he making an arrest?office in the back of the store, and subsequently calls
How is he allowed to wear a badge if he himself is apolice to take them away, the store detective has
convicted felon?made a citizen's arrest.
When the Dogman and his team pursues a suspectThe store detective, a private citizen, witnessed a
out on the streets of the beautiful islands of Hawaiicrime on the store's surveillance camera and called
to arrest a bail jumper, he is executing an age-old U.S.police to have the culprit taken to jail. This is a
law that allows citizens, acting as bounty hunters, tocitizen's arrest.
make "citizen's arrests" on their suspects. As aIn Duane Chapman's case, he is using a variation of a
bounty hunter, he is a private citizen who acquired acitizen's arrest rule. Consider this scenario. A bail
license to work as a bail enforcement agent. For thatjumper is out on bail for a crime he committed and
reason, he is allowed to wear a badge. Furthermore,runs the risk of failing to show up for a scheduled
as a private citizen and not as an employee of a lawcourt date. Then a bail enforcement agent, Chapman,
enforcement agency, he is allowed to make acomes to arrest the jumper and takes them to the
citizen's arrest to enforce bail.local Hawaii jail where authorities await their arrival.
A citizen's arrest does not necessarily require thatDuane Chapman has made a citizen's arrest but an
you wear a badge and carry a 9 oz. bottle of pepperarrest under the authority of the bounty hunter laws
spray like Duane Chapman does on his TV program.of the U.S. Constitution. The fact that he is a licensed
To make a citizen's arrest, you must witness a crimebail enforcement agent allows him to handcuff a
in progress or have witnessed a crime and call policesuspect to detain them.
to take down a report. By having police take aIf you witness a crime, do not attempt to detain the
report so that THEY can apprehend the perpetratorculprit for litigious and safety reasons. You could run
later, you are, in effect, making a citizen's arrest. Youthe risk of getting arrested yourself if you violate
are not detaining the perp yourself by stunning himany kidnapping laws. Gather as much information as
with your very own Taser gun you bought on theyou can about the crime and the perp to make a
Internet and hogtying him for police to arrivepolice report so that you can do your civic duty of
although this CAN happen.making a citizen's arrest.
An example of a citizen's arrest is when a