What is required for a detention to be lawful?

For a detention to be lawful, reasonable suspicion of criminal activity is required. This legal standard means that law enforcement must have specific and articulable facts to believe that a person is involved in criminal activity before they can detain someone. This threshold is less stringent than "probable cause," which is necessary for arrests, but it prevents arbitrary or unjustified detentions based solely on hunches or assumptions.

Consent from the individual is not required for a lawful detention; while individuals can consent to being questioned or searched, the legal standard for detention is independent of such consent. Additionally, while a police officer's presence may facilitate a lawful detention, it is not a legal requirement for the detention itself to be valid. Finally, a warrant from a judge is typically necessary for arrests and searches but is not a prerequisite for a legal detention based on reasonable suspicion. These factors underscore the importance of having a justified basis for detaining an individual rather than relying on informal or speculative measures.