Who Can Arrest a Suspect for a Crime That Occurs on an Airplanes
My question involves criminal law for the state of: All 50.
Suppose a guy who is not the target of any arrest warrant gets violent on an airplane that's in the air. So violent that the pilot makes an emergency landing at Big City Airport. Can Big City PD arrest the man for his in-air behavior? If so, can they also have him locked up in a city/county jail until federal law enforcement arrives?
Re: Can Local Police Arrest and Book People for Crimes That Occur on Airplanes
It really depends on WHAT offense we are talking about, and where the offense occurred. Is this a domestic flight? An overseas flight? What kind of offense? Etc. Generally, these will be federal offenses. And, yes, Big City PD can generally hold the suspect for a time and then turn him over to the feds when they respond.
Re: Can Local Police Arrest and Book People for Crimes That Occur on Airplanes
Quote:
Quoting
moonman239
My question involves criminal law for the state of: All 50.
Suppose a guy who is not the target of any arrest warrant gets violent on an airplane that's in the air. So violent that the pilot makes an emergency landing at Big City Airport. Can Big City PD arrest the man for his in-air behavior? If so, can they also have him locked up in a city/county jail until federal law enforcement arrives?
Local police at the landing airport certainly may arrest a passenger on a complaint regarding violence committed by that passenger onboard an aircraft and hold the passenger either on charges in that state if the incident occurred over that state’s airspace or hold the passenger for the feds or for extradition to the appropriate jurisdiction. Indeed, it happens fairly regularly.
Re: Can Local Police Arrest and Book People for Crimes That Occur on Airplanes
From what I've read, any airspace above a certain altitude is purely federal jurisdiction. Also, what if the airplane is registered in a country other than the US and its crew are from that same country? By international treaty, US jurisdiction over said airplane while it's in the air doesn't apply inside the aircraft. Although, one could certainly argue that by landing in the US and asking for assistance from a US-based police force, the pilot is authorizing the US to exercise jurisdiction over the offense(s) (and let's be honest, who on that airplane would care which country gets jurisdiction over the guy? The sooner he gets booted off, the better.)
Edit: Here's another scenario: Suppose that the said airplane is now too far away from any big city, so the pilot decides to land at Smalltown Airport. This airport has no on-duty police, just a few hired security guards. Law enforcement generally takes at least eight minutes to arrive at the scene of an incident. Do the security officers have the same arrest authority fpr the offenses the guy committed that they would have if the offenses occurred on airport grounds?
Re: Can Local Police Arrest and Book People for Crimes That Occur on Airplanes
Quote:
Quoting
moonman239
From what I've read, any airspace above a certain altitude is purely federal jurisdiction. Also, what if the airplane is registered in a country other than the US and its crew are from that same country? By international treaty, US jurisdiction over said airplane while it's in the air doesn't apply inside the aircraft. Although, one could certainly argue that by landing in the US and asking for assistance from a US-based police force, the pilot is authorizing the US to exercise jurisdiction over the offense(s) (and let's be honest, who on that airplane would care which country gets jurisdiction over the guy? The sooner he gets booted off, the better.)
Edit: Here's another scenario: Suppose that the said airplane is now too far away from any big city, so the pilot decides to land at Smalltown Airport. This airport has no on-duty police, just a few hired security guards. Law enforcement generally takes at least eight minutes to arrive at the scene of an incident. Do the security officers have the same arrest authority fpr the offenses the guy committed that they would have if the offenses occurred on airport grounds?
The details of the incident matter as to what crimes were committed and which state/country would have jurisdiction over prosecuting the offense(s). But the answer I gave before still applies: the local police can arrest the suspect and hold him/her either for prosecution in that state, to turn over to the feds, or to extradite to whatever other state or country has jurisdiction. Whether the security guards have the power to arrest for and hold the suspect would depend on the applicable state law.
There are thousands of different scenerios you could come up with. But I don’t think folks here are going to want to indulge in an endless array of hypotheticals for you.
Re: Can Local Police Arrest and Book People for Crimes That Occur on Airplanes
Quote:
Quoting
moonman239
Edit: Here's another scenario: Suppose that the said airplane is now too far away from any big city, so the pilot decides to land at Smalltown Airport. This airport has no on-duty police, just a few hired security guards. Law enforcement generally takes at least eight minutes to arrive at the scene of an incident. Do the security officers have the same arrest authority fpr the offenses the guy committed that they would have if the offenses occurred on airport grounds?
They would just sit on the tarmac with the subject restrained onboard until police arrive. If the subject is properly restrained, there is no urgency to land so the plane could continue to a larger city if necessary. Believe me, if the subject is being that difficult...they would be restrained. Airline passengers are more than happy these days to help deal with disruptive passengers, either for their own/others' safety or their 5 minutes of youtube fame when it's posted online.