Music hi spike Hebert thanks for asking me. Can I be arrested with only circumstantial evidence? Yes, well, that was a quick webisode. In order for a police officer to arrest you for any crime, the cop needs to be convinced that there's at least enough facts and inferences to make a reasonable person believe that there's a good probability that you committed a specific crime. This means you don't have to be found holding a smoking gun over a dead body. All that's required for a lawful arrest is that a cop have probable cause to believe that defendant X committed crime why. And the definition of probable cause is pretty much just that - facts sufficient to convince a reasonable person that defendant X committed crime why. There's no magic formula and there aren't any requirements for any specific form or quantity of evidence, and there's definitely no requirement that there must be direct evidence - circumstantial will do. Again, you don't have to be caught in the act, no eyewitness has to identify you, and no video is necessary, although any of those things will help the state prove its case. So long as there's enough indirect or circumstantial evidence to convince a given cop that you committed a specific crime, then yes, you can be arrested. But just because there happened to be enough evidence for a cop to arrest you does not necessarily mean that there's enough evidence for you to be convicted of the crime why. Because the standard for an arrest is significantly lower than the standard for a conviction, and that's reason number 147 why if you've been arrested, you should hire a criminal defense lawyer. Thank you for your question, I appreciate your having asked it, and I invite you to...
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