[Author's Note: This post has been substantively edited to make corrections in response to helpful comments from readers.] A person generally may not lawfully be arrested unless there is probable cause to believe he has committed a crime. But there are several exceptions to this rule. Most involve arrests made pursuant to an order for arrest issued by a judicial official. A judicial official may, for example, issue an order for the arrest of a defendant who fails to appear in court or who violates conditions of probation. See G.S. 15A-305(b). And there is one circumstance in which a law enforcement officer may, without a judicial order or warrant for the defendant’s arrest and without probable cause to believe a crime has been committed, arrest a defendant. That’s when the officer has probable cause to believe the defendant has violated a condition of pretrial release. G.S. 15A-401(b)(1),(b)(2)(f.). Arrests for violations of pretrial release conditions. The General Assembly amended G.S. 15A-401(b) in 2011 to authorize officers to make warrantless arrests of a defendant based on probable cause that the person had violated a condition of pretrial release, regardless of whether the violation occurred in or out of the officer’s presence. Those amendments were effective for violations of pretrial release conditions that occurred on or after December 1, 2011. Before that time, officers were authorized to make warrantless arrests for defendants who were charged with crimes of domestic violence and who violated a condition of release for that crime, but were not permitted [...]
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