Oftentimes, we witness the sudden “you’re under arrest” scenes in movies. However, that can also happen in real life. Now that our Dear President is done making the authority powerful in terms of arresting, it’s just right to know your rights if in any case it happens to you. Imagine doing your thing in a normal day and all of a sudden, a police officer says you’re under arrest; what would you do? First things first; before knowing what to do, you of course need to know your rights. What rights do you have? What are the things you can do if that scenario happens? And lastly, what actions can you take after being invited by authorities?
So, can police officers just force you to come with them in police offices? Can they just simply tell everyone they need to come with them?
Of course, authorities also know what they are capable of and under what circumstances can they perform. A police officer or any private person can make an arrest anytime at any given date by virtue of a Warrant of Arrest which is issued by the court. If in case a warrant of arrest is missing, police officers or a private person can make an arrest under the following conditions:
When, in his presence, the person to be arrested has committed, is actually committing, or is attempting to commit an offense;
When an offense has just been committed and he has probable cause to believe, based on personal knowledge of facts or circumstances, that the person to be arrested has committed it; and
When the person to be arrested is a prisoner who has escaped from a penal establishment or place where he is serving final judgment or temporarily confined while his case is pending, or has escaped while being transferred from one confinement area to another.
What are your rights as a person and as a citizen of the Philippines?
You have the right to refuse to join them
If you’re just walking around and a police officer says you’re under arrest, you have the right to refuse joining them. Without a warrant, the reason for your arrest is abstract and therefore, you have the right to refuse their invitation. However, if an individual commits a crime that is punishable by law and the police officer himself witnesses it, they can arrest you without any warrants.
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