In this article, we’re going to take a look at what happens when you experience a false arrest, what rights you have when you have experienced an unlawful arrest, and how a criminal lawyer in Richmond Hill can help you out if you are unlawfully arrested.
What Does Ontario/Canadian Law Say About False Arrest?
Under Ontario law, a false arrest is a ‘tort resulting from intentional and total confinement of a person against his or her will and without lawful justification.’ Unlawful imprisonment is a continuation of false arrest.
What Is False Arrest?
A false arrest is when someone is restrained for no lawful reason. If someone arrests you and has no legal authority to do so, then this would be an unlawful arrest. Similarly, legal authorities cannot arrest people on a whim. This means that unless they have probable cause or a warrant for your arrest, they cannot legally arrest you.
In some cases, even having a warrant still does not make an arrest lawful. If the warrant doesn’t properly identify the person or the crime, doesn’t list which court issued it, or the police lied to the judge to get the warrant, this could result in an unlawful arrest.