Arrest without

warrant

An arrest without warrant or a warrantless

arrest is an arrest of an individual without
the use of an arrest warrant.
warrant.

England and Wales

Section 24 of the Police and Criminal
Evidence Act 1984,[1] as of 1 January 2006,
provides that a constable may arrest,
without a warrant, anyone who is about to
commit or is currently committing an
offence (or anyone the constable has
reasonable grounds to believe to be about
to commit or currently committing an
offence). The constable is also entitled to
arrest anyone guilty of an offence or
anyone who he reasonably believes to be
guilty of an offence. However, the
constable must have reasonable grounds
that any of the following reasons make it
necessary to arrest the person in question:
to enable the real name or address of the
person in question to be ascertained, to
allow the prompt and effective
investigation of the offence or conduct of
the person in question, or to prevent the
person in question:

causing physical injury to

himself/herself or any other person,
suffering physical injury,
causing loss of or damage to property,
committing an offence against public
decency (provided members of the
public going about their normal business
cannot reasonably be expected to avoid
the person in question),
causing an unlawful obstruction of the
highway.
 to protect a child or other vulnerable
person from the person in question,
to prevent any prosecution for the
offence from being hindered by the
disappearance of the person in
question.

Section 24A has similar provisions for

citizens' arrests but the reasons permitted
for arrest by anyone other than a
constable are limited to preventing the
person in question from causing injury to
the arrestor, themselves or to others;
preventing property damage; or preventing
the person in question from making off
before a constable can assume
responsibility for him.

The definition of an arrest, however, is

contained in the judgement of Lord Diplock
in Holgate-Mohammed v Duke, where he
stated that an arrest is "a continuing act; it
starts with the arrester taking a person
into his custody, (sc. by action or words
restraining him from moving anywhere
beyond the arrester's control), and it
continues until the person so restrained is
either released from custody or, having
been brought before a magistrate, is
remanded in custody by the magistrate's
judicial act."[2]
The Philippines
In the Philippines, as provided in Rule 113,
Section 5 of the 2000 Revised Rules of
Criminal Procedure,[3] a peace officer or a
private person may, without a warrant,
arrest a person:

When, in his presence, the person to be

arrested has committed, is actually
committing, or is attempting to commit
an offense (in flagrante delicto arrest);
When an offense has just been
committed and he has probable cause
to believe based on personal knowledge
of facts or circumstances that the
 person to be arrested has committed it
(hot pursuit arrest); and
When the person to be arrested is a
prisoner who has escaped from a penal
establishment or place where he is
serving final judgment or is temporarily
confined while his case is pending, or
has escaped while being transferred
from one confinement to another.

Also as provided within the Revised Rules

are other instances of lawful arrests
without warrant:

If a person lawfully arrested escapes or

is rescued, any person may immediately
pursue or retake him without a warrant
 at any time and in any place within the
Philippines
For the purpose of surrendering the
accused, the bondsmen may arrest him
or, upon written authority endorsed on a
certified copy of the undertaking, cause
him to be arrested by a police officer or
any other person of suitable age and
discretion
An accused released on bail may be
rearrested without the necessity of a
warrant if he attempts to depart from
the Philippines without permission of the
court where the case is pending

United States
In the United States, an arrest without a
warrant still requires probable cause – in
the case of an arrest without a warrant,
probable cause must be promptly filed.[4]

An arrest without warrant is generally

allowed when:

The person has committed a felony or

misdemeanor, and the officer has
witnessed it
A felony has been committed and the
officer reasonably believes, known as
probable cause, the person being
arrested is the one who has committed
 it, as long as immediately after a
warrant is obtained from the court.
A violation of Traffic law seen by the
officer.
When a suspect is in their home but one
of the exigent circumstances occur; this
is when an officer has reason to believe
the suspect is escaping, evidence is
being destroyed, and when a person
inside is in danger of being harmed.

See also
Powers of the police in England and
Wales
Right to silence in England and Wales
 Individuals with powers of arrest
Right to silence in the United States

References
1. Police and Criminal Evidence Act
1984, s24
2. [1984] AC 437, 441
3. "THE REVISED RULES OF CRIMINAL
PROCEDURE (EFFECTIVE DECEMBER
1, 2000)" (https://www.chanrobles.co
m/revisedrulesofcriminalprocedure.ht
m#RULE%20113) . Chan Robles
Virtual Law Library. Archived (https://w
eb.archive.org/web/2001071908252
4/http://www.chanrobles.com:80/revis
 edrulesofcriminalprocedure.htm)
from the original on July 19, 2001.
4. Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure,
Title II: Rule 5b

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