How to Use citizen's arrest in a Sentence

citizen's arrest

noun
  • The killing played a critical role in Georgia's push to pass a hate crime bill into law and the overhaul of the state's citizen's arrest law.
    Christina Maxouris, CNN, 6 Mar. 2022
  • The case has caused nationwide pain and outrage, and raised questions about the scope of citizen's arrest laws.
    Aj Willingham, CNN, 22 May 2020
  • The defense had sought to convince the jury that the McMichaels and Bryan were trying to execute a citizen's arrest, which was legal at the time in the state.
    NBC News, 7 Jan. 2022
  • The men claimed to be conducting a citizen's arrest of Arbery.
    Melissa Mahtani, CNN, 5 Nov. 2021
  • Dunikoski says the defendants had no right to make a citizen's arrest.
    CBS News, 27 Nov. 2021
  • Can armed White men in a pickup rely on a 'citizen's arrest' claim to kill an unarmed Black jogger?
    Zachary B. Wolf, CNN, 18 Nov. 2021
  • Two of the men -- Gregory and Travis McMichael -- claimed to be conducting a citizen's arrest and acting in self-defense.
    Deanna Hackney, CNN, 7 May 2021
  • The bill would eliminate the right for civilians to perform citizen's arrest with some exceptions.
    Nyamekye Daniel, Washington Examiner, 17 Feb. 2021
  • Other citizen's arrest laws specify whether the law can be used for felony or misdemeanor crimes.
    Aj Willingham, CNN, 12 May 2020
  • O'Malley said in the release that citizen's arrests are legal, but dangerous.
    Cory Shaffer, cleveland.com, 14 Sep. 2017
  • Defense attorneys had said their clients suspected Arbery was a burglar and were trying to make a citizen's arrest, which was legal at the time.
    NBC News, 2 Dec. 2021
  • The defendants argued self-defense, as well as acting within their rights under Georgia's citizen's arrest law, which was legal at the time but later changed in the wake of the shooting.
    NBC News, 24 Nov. 2021
  • The prosecution said the men had no knowledge of any crimes committed by Arbery and had no intention of making a citizen's arrest.
    Raisa Habersham, USA TODAY, 23 Nov. 2021
  • Georgia's citizen's arrest law, which was passed during the Civil War, was repealed earlier this year.
    Nicholas Reimann, Forbes, 15 Nov. 2021
  • The property owner attempted a citizen's arrest for trespassing and informed police of the incident, according to the Daily Mail and The Sun.
    Stephanie Wenger, PEOPLE.com, 24 Feb. 2022
  • The defense strategy depends on Georgia's citizen's arrest and self-defense laws.
    Kate Brumback, ajc, 14 Nov. 2021
  • One woman who was unhappy with DeWine’s handling of the health crisis apparently plotted to conduct a citizen's arrest of the governor.
    Anne Saker, The Enquirer, 11 Nov. 2020
  • Several Democratic lawmakers joined protesters and called for Georgia to pass reforms including the repeal of the state's citizen's arrest and stand-your-ground laws.
    Russ Bynum, Anchorage Daily News, 16 June 2020
  • Kemp also signed a repeal of the state's citizen's arrest law, which allowed private citizens to detain someone suspected of committing a felony in their presence.
    Raisa Habersham, USA TODAY, 6 Nov. 2021
  • Defense attorneys said Arbery lashed out violently with his fists to resist a lawful citizen's arrest by the defendants, who are white.
    The Associated. Press, Arkansas Online, 24 Nov. 2021
  • An angry resident suggested last week that the Barry-Eaton District health officer should be put in a gas chamber, and a citizen's arrest was attempted at a public meeting.
    Kristen Jordan Shamus, Detroit Free Press, 26 Sep. 2021
  • The state's Civil War-era citizen's arrest law was originally enacted to enable Georgians to capture fugitive slaves.
    Morgan Rimmer, CNN, 9 Mar. 2021
  • The potential loosening of restrictions feels like a setback for gun safety advocates who saw Georgia's repeal last year of a citizen's arrest law predating the Civil War as a step forward in the wake of Arbery's death.
    NBC News, 26 Feb. 2022
  • Georgia lawmakers will consider an overhaul of the state's citizen's arrest law, nearly a year after the death of Ahmaud Arbery, who was killed by two residents in Brunswick last February.
    Nyamekye Daniel, Washington Examiner, 17 Feb. 2021
  • Georgia's citizen's arrest law was repealed earlier this year.
    Nicholas Reimann, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2021
  • Then, there are Georgia's specific citizen's arrest laws, which Aveni says are particularly loose.
    Aj Willingham, CNN, 10 Nov. 2021
  • Defense attorneys in the state trial contended the McMichaels, suspecting Arbery of burglary, pursued him through neighborhood streets to conduct a citizen's arrest.
    Pamela Kirkland, CNN, 16 Feb. 2022
  • The defense attorneys contend Arbery was mistakenly identified as a suspect in local burglaries, and was killed while trying to escape from the three men during a citizen's arrest.
    Nicholas Reimann, Forbes, 15 Nov. 2021
  • Prosecutors argued the pursuers acted on rumors and had no immediate knowledge Arbery had committed a crime, which is required to claim a citizen's arrest.
    Pamela Kirkland, CNN, 16 Feb. 2022
  • Fox's lawyer argued that the citizen's arrest comment showed that Fox wasn't really up for kidnapping the government, but instead suggested an alternative.
    Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press, 5 Apr. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'citizen's arrest.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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