citizen's arrest

American

noun

Law.

an arrest made by a private citizen whose authority derives from the fact of citizenship.

citizen's arrest British

noun

an arrest carried out by an ordinary member of the public rather than an officer of the law

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of citizen's arrest

First recorded in 1950–55

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

citizen's arrest

In retrospect, I would’ve cheered, but I feel that might’ve interrupted the uncomfortable silence that fell upon the auditorium, maybe even sparked a citizen’s arrest, considering the scene's subject matter.

From Salon ● May 3, 2025

Thomas posted his citizen’s arrest on Facebook and police arrested Rabson that day.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2024

Evidence in the trial covered a relatively brief encounter but involved complicated legal issues arising from an off-duty officer asserting that he was making a citizen’s arrest — which in turn affected the self-defense arguments.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 17, 2023

Former HGV driver Mitchell said he was "compelled" to carry out the "citizen's arrest".

From BBC ● Feb. 3, 2023

It prompted state legislators to significantly weaken a citizen’s arrest law that one local prosecutor had cited soon after the shooting to argue that the three men should not be arrested.

From New York Times ● Feb. 22, 2022

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023