Is It Legal to Make a Citizen’s Arrest in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, or Maine?

When characters say they want to make a citizen's arrest in movies or TV shows, do you ever wonder exactly how something like that is even possible or if it's even real? After all, it usually happens in comedies.

Does a citizen's arrest even exist?

According to the How Stuff Works website, uniformed police officers and police departments didn't exist until about 200 years ago, so it was up to everyday people to make arrests. Despite its dark, heinous history in America, where self-appointed citizens would go so far as to viciously beat up or even murder who they determined to be lawbreakers, the law is still on the books in every state.

Originally, only white men could make citizen’s arrests. By the mid-1600s, many militias and city watchmen, especially in the South, used that power to intimidate and terrorize enslaved and free Black communities. This practice continued through the Civil War, the Jim Crow era, and even into the 1900s.

So, if you want to make a citizen's arrest, trying to stop someone from leaving before the police arrive could be considered false imprisonment or kidnapping, no? According to How Things Work, it really depends on what your citizen's arrest is and if anyone is injured.

Did you stop a bank robber, a fistfight, or a shoplifter?

MASSACHUSETTS

According to Attorney Michael Franklin, the Bay State allows a private citizen to arrest someone if the other person “has in fact committed” a felony. You must see the crime occur and have absolute knowledge that the infraction is a felony.

READ ON: Is It Illegal to Flash Your Lights to Warn Drivers of Police Speed Trap?

NEW HAMPSHIRE

According to the New Hampshire Law Library, a private citizen can arrest someone who has committed a felony in their presence or if they have reasonable cause to believe the person did.

MAINE

According to the state legislature, a private citizen can arrest someone if they're committing or have committed a crime or are charged with a crime in another state that is punishable by death or more than one year in prison. 

Keep in mind that the person you're arresting can sue you, especially if you turn out to be wrong.