Here is an intellectual/legal question. In our Fantasy League, we give a $5 prize to the owner of the player who is First Arrested (the "Eugene Robinson Award"). Nobody has ever won it before a Week One game, so this would be a record. The thing is: was that an "arrest" or a "stop" under Florida law? I do not hear the police communicating an intent to "arrest" (requirement #3 below) but I throw this out to the Board for opinions...?
What Legally Constitutes an Arrest in Florida?
An arrest always involves restricting someone’s physical freedom and taking them into custody. But not every police interaction rises to the level of an arrest. There are three tiers of police-citizen encounters:
- Casual communication with no coercion or detention.
- Brief investigative stops supported by reasonable suspicion of a crime.
- Full arrests supported by probable cause.
Only the third tier constitutes an actual arrest. There must be probable cause to believe you committed a crime. The police must also fulfill four specific elements:
● They must intend to arrest you under real or pretended authority.
● They must physically or constructively seize you and detain you.
● They must communicate their intent to arrest you.
● You must understand you are being arrested.
If any of these elements are missing, there is no valid arrest. For example, if officers just stop your car without expressing intent to arrest you, that doesn’t qualify as an arrest.