Legal Question in Constitutional Law in Indiana

What legal actions can be filed against the city of gary police department for an arrest on a person who did not have a warrant for there arrest and they spent one night detained in the city of gary police departments holding tank and sleep on cold steel bunks with no mattress and received no food and was released the night morning. And an officer stated when ask about the matter the next day upon release....stated by officer: "welcome to gary"

Would a tort claim be the answer?


Asked on 1/13/11, 10:18 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

You'll have to do better than that. Police usually don't need a warrant to arrest someone. You have told us nothing of the circumstances, so there is no way to say whether the arrest seemed justified at the time.

It is common for prosecutors to decide not to pursue a case against someone who has been arrested. That seems to be what happened to you. It doesn't mean that the person should never have been arrested, or even that the prosecutor couldn't win a conviction. It just means she has limited resources and decided not to use them on this particular case.

I don't mean to make light of your situation. Being arrested is a big deal, especially if there was no good reason for it. But all you have told us about your arrest is that there was no warrant and that you were released the next morning. Those facts really don't suggest any violation of your rights, much less one worth suing over.

With more facts I might see things differently.

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Answered on 1/18/11, 10:28 pm


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