How to Perform a Citizen's Arrest of A Bush Administration Official by Nathan Robinson

by Erik Larson | August 16, 2008 at 04:18 pm

697 views | 11 Recommendations | 27 comments

The news that 4 people had been arrested in Iowa while trying to perform a citizen's arrest on Karl Rove got me wondering: Can we arrest Bush administration officials ourselves? So I slogged through a slew of state statutes, and as it turns out, the answer is yes. But only if you live in certain particular states.

Citizen's arrests have a long, rich tradition dating back hundreds of years. Because the power of ordinary people to help law enforcement execute its duties is important, nearly every state has some sort of statute on the books permitting citizen detentions of suspected criminals.
However, while most states allow citizen's arrests, the majority require the presence of the citizen performing the arrest during the crime. A number of states have more flexible language in their laws, though. The California Penal Code, for example says the following:

837. A private person may arrest another:
1. For a public offense committed or attempted in his presence.
2. When the person arrested has committed a felony, although not
in his presence.
3. When a felony has been in fact committed, and he has reasonable cause for believing the person arrested to have committed it.

Alabama and Kentucky have similar wordings. Montana phrases things thusly:

A private person may arrest another when there is probable cause to believe that the person is committing or has committed an offense and the existing circumstances require the person's immediate arrest.

The dispute here will likely arise over the definition of the words "require the person's immediate arrest." I'd argue that if anyone needed to be immediately arrested, it's Karl Rove, but a Montana judge might disagree. And one of the main downsides to citizen's arrests is that if you're in the wrong, you have almost no legal protection (and depending on state law, may have committed a crime tantamount to kidnapping).

The full article has more insightful commentary, plus a handy 5 point check list for activists considering a citizen's arrest of a Bush administration official.

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Amy Judd

at 16:23 on August 16th, 2008

Thanks so much for posting this.

It's always helpful to use the highlight tool to excerpt from a piece you found interesting, and then add your own commentary either above or below it, or in the middle if you wish! It will be much more interesting for our readers as well.

If you have any questions, you can just ask me! Thanks!

Erik Larson

at 18:59 on August 16th, 2008

thanks, Amy, I have been doing that sometimes, but didn't think of anything to add to this one. I've been going back through all the links I submitted to opednews.com and posting the best stuff here. I think I like this place a lot.

Amy Judd

at 20:46 on August 16th, 2008

That's good to hear!

master_jim2008

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 16:28 on August 16th, 2008

Erik Larson, I like this story. It's good stuff.

With someone like Rove, I'd take the risk of being charged with kidnapping

Emilio Lizardo

at 06:04 on August 17th, 2008

We know you don't really mean that, Jim ...

master_jim2008

at 16:32 on August 16th, 2008

this is the original story

Four peace activists were arrested on Friday as they attempted to make a "citizens arrest" of Karl Rove, Reuters reported.

Protesters let police know of their intentions to arrest Rove while he was in Des Moines for a private fundraiser for the Republican Party of Iowa. Police arrested the protesters after they stepped through the gate at the entrance of the private club where Rove was speaking.

"It should be Karl Rove in that van. War criminal!" one demonstrator shouted as police rounded up the four men.

Chet Guinn, a retired Methodist Minister, was among those led away.

"To be silent when major crimes are being committed against all humanity makes us accomplices," Gwinn said.

The other three activists were Des Moines Catholic Workers, Edward Bloomer, 61, Kirk Brown, 25, and Mona Shaw, 57. All four were cited for trespassing and released, according to IowaPolitics.com.

Shortly before police intercepted their march towards Rove, they cited Iowa code provisions for making citizens arrests and the federal statutes they claimed Rove had broken.

All four maintained that Iowa Code obligated them to make an arrest if they believed a felony had been committed and turn Rove over to police so he could be brought to a judge for formal indictment.

Brown and Shaw made a similar attempt to arrest Rove when he spoke at the University of Iowa in March. They were arrested and released without charges.

About 12 activists showed up to protest, Radio Iowa reported, including Daniella Bermeo of Ecuador.

"Karl Rove is a war criminal and war criminals cannot just be running around like that, like they haven't done anything," Bermeo said. "I'm supporting the cause and supporting the people that he's committed war crimes against."

Reporters were not allowed to hear Rove speak in the club, where Republicans paid either $100 to see him speak during lunch or $1,000 to meet him and have their picture taken with him at a separate reception, according to Radio Iowa.

Recently, Karl Rove has refused demands from congressional Democrats to testify about allegations of political pressure at the Justice Department and his alleged role in the prosecution of a former governor of Alabama.

Rove flaunted his absence from hearings he called a "circus" on The O'Reilly Factor last week.

Erik Larson

at 19:02 on August 16th, 2008

Thanks for all those links, Jim. I love comments, they expand on and illuminate the articles. Your comment here should be it's own article, imho- good reporting.

PEP

at 07:35 on August 17th, 2008

So why are you copying and pasting an entire article from somewhere else, Jim? That's a no-no. Next time, just put in a short (short!) excerpt and then provide the link with the handy chain icon above the box you type in.

About this highlight: I hope it's not the entire piece. Repeating: the HT is used to grab an excerpt of something you find interesting. Then you add your own commentary. :)

Erik Larson

at 08:19 on August 17th, 2008

the highlight is not the entire piece; besides more interesting commentary the full article has a 5 point check list for patriot activists thinking of trying a citizen's arrest

PEP

at 08:26 on August 17th, 2008

Thanks for clarifying that, Erik. I hope citizen activists fully inform themselves of their state and town's laws re: citizen arrests. They can vary.

link

at 16:45 on August 16th, 2008

Don't arrest them....just shoot them.

Erik Larson

at 19:05 on August 16th, 2008

i'm not in favor of the death penalty, and i think life in prison and then having to die and face your maker is a worse punishment. Imho, these kind of sociopaths need to be locked up and studied (after being given fair and very public trials); criminals this extreme have not been analyzed and reported on in the medical journals, and the more we understand them, the easier it will be to keep them out of public office and off corporate boards.

Emilio Lizardo

at 06:03 on August 17th, 2008

I really like this comment ! Only one problem - the decision to have 'very public trials' will be made by the very people you're describing ... it's kind of like a self-maintaining situation ... that's why they call it the establishment ...

Erik Larson

at 08:07 on August 17th, 2008

good point Emilio, the lack of justice for high and mighty is criminals is a historic problem of civilization. Disease has a hard time getting a foothold in a healthy body, and can be driven out by practices, foods, herbs that promote health and well being; i think the way that technology is breaking down barriers to communication and improving the flow and distribution of information is changing the social environment; eventually these cancerous parasitic establishment types who thrive on lies and distortion will not be able to make a living.

White Noise

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 17:41 on August 16th, 2008

WAY TO GO !

http://www.nowpublic.com/world/peace-activists-arrested-attempting-citizens-arrest-karl-rove

Let's make it a national sport for a while, we've got the whole executive branch to put on ice ;)

http://www.nowpublic.com/world/citizen-arrest-executive-branch-now

"We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office.": Aesop - (c. 550 B.C.) legendary Greek fabulist

Erik Larson

at 19:09 on August 16th, 2008

Very appropriate Aesop quote, thanks, i hadn't heard that. Wow, some things never change, huh? We'll see, the information/network age is making the world transparent. The People are able to monitor our public officials, communicate and organize as never before

There's a reason Bush bought this; no extradition treaty with the US

Paraguay in a spin about Bush's alleged 100,000 acre hideaway

bill hicks

at 18:30 on August 16th, 2008

Sounds like dumb and dumber in

Erik Larson

at 19:10 on August 16th, 2008

I assume you mean Bush and his brain, Rove? Toss in Cheney and you've got the 3 stooges- or is Scrooges?

joellerose

at 04:51 on August 17th, 2008

How do we arrest the thugs who think it's smart to try to arrest elected officials for doing their jobs?

Erik Larson

at 07:48 on August 17th, 2008

Did you read the article? The activists got arrested.

However- did you elect Bush and his brain to deceive the nation into war and spy on Americans illegally; was that the job you elected them to do?

joellerose

at 07:53 on August 17th, 2008

President Bush was reelected in 2004. Obviously the voters don't agree with you, and that's the only poll that matters. I'm not interested in debating any longer why we needed to remove Saddam or President Bush's actual record on surveillance. I don't believe any of you are interested in any facts at all.

Erik Larson

at 08:13 on August 17th, 2008

you are entitled to your belief that the exit polls lied in 2004 and that Bush was actually elected. You are also entitled to your belief that unaccountable, easily hackable and proven unreliable evoting machines are fine for a Republic with a democratic system for choosing representatives.

The Citizens of the USA are entitled to a transparent and secure electoral system, however

Evidence of Electoral Fraud in the 2004 U.S. Presidential Election: A Reader by Michael Keefer

joellerose

at 08:59 on August 17th, 2008

You people on the left have a hard time with elections. Whenever you lose it's always because the election was stolen. About the only time you win the presidency is when you pretend to be something other than what you are, as Obama is now doing.