When police officers in New Jersey investigate a criminal matter, they may arrest or detain someone. Many people assume that being arrested and detained are the same thing.
This is understandable, since being detained involves being placed in handcuffs, which is also what happens when someone is under arrest. Additionally, police officers might not explain what is happening when they place you in handcuffs, leaving you assuming you are under arrest.
Detainment
However, being detained is not the same as being arrested. Being detained means that police officers are holding you for a short period of time to ask you questions and learn more about a situation. Police typically detain you when they have reasonable suspicion to believe you have committed a crime but do not have enough evidence to arrest you.
Reasonable suspicion means more than a police officer having a bad feeling that you committed a crime. They must be able to point to some specific facts that led them to believe you were engaged in criminal activity.
Police officers will likely ask you questions when you are detained. The purpose of the questions is to find out if they have probable cause to arrest you.
If their questions do not produce enough evidence to give them probable cause, they must let you go. Detainment should not last for a long time. There is no specific time it should last, but it should be enough time for the police to learn what happened.
Arrest
If you are unsure if the detainment is over, ask the police if you are free to leave. If they say no, this might be because you are being placed under arrest.
Exercise your right to remain silent if you are placed under arrest. This is one of your most important rights and can make a major difference in the outcome of your criminal charges.