Answer :

  • Probable Cause: - Probable Cause is the authority which gives an Officer or someone of said power to enforce a broken law/rule.

EXAMPLE 1: Officer 1 stops Car 1 for speeding and swerving, Officer 1 gets to the vehicle and it smells heavily of alcohol and sees beer bottles in the passenger seat, Officer 1 then instructs the Driver of Car 1 to step out of the vehicle and does several DUI tests, Driver of Car 1 fails and gets arrested by Officer 1.

--- Explanation 1: Officer 1 had probable cause to arrest the driver due to drinking alcohol and failing the dui tests since Officer 1 saw bottles and smelled alcohol, this could have been avoided if Driver of Car 1 didnt drunk drive nor have sped or swerved.

  • Reasonable Suspicion:

- Reasonable Suspicion is the authority which gives an Officer of someone of said power to investigate the activity and who may be involved.

EXAMPLE 2: Dispatch calls out a BOLO [Be On the Look Out] for said person who committed a felony hit and run, vehicle is said to be a red Chevy truck. Officer 1 sees a red Chevy truck that fits the match Dispatch called out. Officer 1 calls for additional units, Officer 2 and 3 show up, and Officer 1 conducts the stop. Officer 1 and 2 approach with caution. Driver of said truck and Officers go back and forth eventually having the subject out of the truck and questioning. Officer 1 says "We have reason to believe you were involved in a felony hit and run." - Truck owner complies and all Officers find out the subject they stopped if NOT the person they are looking for.

--- Explanation 2: Officer 1 thinks the truck is a perfect match of what Dispatch called out, Officer 1 asks for more units causing Officer 2 and 3 to arrive, they investigate the situation later finding out the person they stopped was not the person they were looking for, but stopped that truck anyways because they have REASON TO BELIEVE (Reasonable Suspicion) that they were involved in the felony crime that occurred minutes ago.

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Rewritten by : Barada

Final answer:

Probable cause is the legal standard used to justify a search or an arrest, requiring a reasonable belief that a crime has been committed and that evidence related to the crime can be found. Reasonable suspicion is a lower standard, allowing an officer to briefly detain and search someone if there is a reasonable belief that the person has committed or is about to commit a crime.

Explanation:

Probable cause: Probable cause is the legal standard used to justify a search or an arrest. It requires a reasonable belief that a crime has been committed and that evidence related to the crime can be found. For example, if the police have a warrant to search a house based on probable cause, they believe there is enough evidence to reasonably suspect that a crime has been committed and that evidence of the crime can be found in the house.

Reasonable suspicion: Reasonable suspicion is a lower standard than probable cause. It is a justification for an officer to briefly detain someone and perform a limited search if there is a reasonable belief that the person has committed or is about to commit a crime. For example, if the police observe someone acting suspiciously near a parked car and have a reasonable suspicion that the person may be attempting to break into the car, they can briefly detain and search the person.