Legal Definitions - Stop and frisk

Stop and frisk is a legal term referring to a brief encounter between a police officer and an individual, permitted under specific circumstances by the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. It involves two distinct actions:

• A stop: An officer briefly detains a person if they have a reasonable suspicion, based on specific and observable facts, that the person has committed, is committing, or is about to commit a crime. This temporary detention allows the officer to investigate the suspicion.
• A frisk: If, after lawfully stopping someone, the officer also has a reasonable suspicion that the person is armed and dangerous, they may conduct a quick pat-down of the person's outer clothing. This pat-down is strictly limited to checking for weapons and is done solely for the safety of the officer and others.

Both the stop and the frisk must be justified by reasonable suspicion, which is a lower legal standard than probable cause but requires more than just a hunch or generalized suspicion. The duration and scope of these actions must be limited to what is necessary to address the initial suspicion and ensure safety.

Examples:

• Imagine a police officer patrolling a commercial district late at night. The officer observes an individual attempting to pry open the back door of a closed electronics store with a crowbar. Based on these observations, the officer has a reasonable suspicion that the individual is attempting to commit a burglary.

  The officer can lawfully stop the individual to ask questions and investigate. If, during this interaction, the officer notices a suspicious bulge in the individual's jacket pocket that could be a weapon, or if the individual makes a sudden movement towards their waistband, the officer would then have additional reasonable suspicion that the person is armed and dangerous. This would justify a quick frisk (pat-down) of the outer clothing to check for weapons, ensuring the officer's safety during the investigation.

• Consider a situation where police receive a credible tip about a person openly carrying an illegal firearm in a public park, along with a detailed description of the person's appearance and location. An officer arrives at the park and spots someone who perfectly matches the description provided in the tip.

  The officer can initiate a lawful stop of this individual based on the reasonable suspicion that they are committing a crime (carrying an illegal firearm). Given the nature of the tip (involving an illegal firearm), the officer would immediately have reasonable suspicion that the individual is armed and dangerous. Therefore, the officer could proceed directly to a quick frisk to locate any potential weapons for safety purposes.