Texas law states: “A peace officer or any other person, may, without a warrant, arrest an offender when the offense is committed in his presence or within his view, if the offense is one classed as a felony or as an offense against the public peace.” That means a citizen can make an arrest if they see a felony or a ...
Understanding the Warrant Requirement Exceptions to the Warrant Requirement. Consent to a Search. Search Incident to Arrest. Plain View Doctrine. Exigent Circumstances. Hot Pursuit. Vehicles and Probable Cause. Probable Cause in Vehicle Searches.
A peace officer may arrest, without warrant, when a felony or breach of the peace has been committed in the presence or within the view of a magistrate, and such magistrate verbally orders the arrest of the offender.
An officer is authorized to make a warrantless arrest when: a. Verbally ordered by a magistrate, b. The officer finds a person in a suspicious place and under circumstances that give the officer probable cause to believe that such person: 1) Has committed a felony.
Article 15.26, Code of Criminal Procedure, provides that an arrest warrant and any affidavit presented to a magistrate in support of the warrant is public information and must be made available for public inspection.
Hot pursuit: Officers can arrest and search individuals who are suspected of committing a felony. For the pursuit, officers can enter any property to search and seize evidence without warrants.
Such offenses include minor traffic violations (e.g., speeding, registration issues, seatbelt violations, failure to signal a turn, etc.) and other nonviolent offenses (e.g., noise violations, littering, child support violations, etc.).