Chicago Criminal Lawyer Blog
When someone runs after seeing the police, officers are naturally going to become suspicious. But suspicion and probable cause are not the same thing. I have handled criminal cases for many years where the legality of a police stop, arrest, or search became one of the most important issues in the case. One of the first questions that has to be asked is not simply what the police eventually found. The more important question may be: What did the police know before they stopped, arrested, or searched the person? That distinction can make a tremendous difference. If the police see someone run and eventually discover drugs, a firearm, or other evidence, the fact that something illegal was ultimately discovered does not necessarily make everything the police did beforehand lawful. Courts generally examine the facts known to the officers when they acted. This brings up an important question: Is running from the police, by itself, enough to establish probable cause to arrest you or search you or your vehicle? Generally, the answer is no. Flight can certainly be an important factor, but it does not automatically give the police unlimited authority to arrest or search someone.
The Fourth Amendment Protects You From Unreasonable Searches and Seizures
The starting point is the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Fourth Amendment protects people against unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. This constitutional protection applies to police encounters ranging from temporary investigative stops to arrests and searches of vehicles, homes, and personal property. One of the most important things to understand is that there are different legal standards governing different police actions. Police may sometimes temporarily detain someone based upon reasonable suspicion. An arrest ordinarily requires the higher standard of probable cause. Those terms are sometimes used interchangeably in everyday conversation, but legally they mean different things.
Reasonable Suspicion Is Not the Same as Probable Cause
Reasonable suspicion allows an officer to conduct a limited investigative detention—commonly referred to as a Terry stop—when the officer can point to specific facts that reasonably suggest criminal activity may be occurring. Probable cause requires more. For an arrest, police generally need facts and circumstances sufficient to establish probable cause that the person committed or is committing a crime. This distinction becomes especially important in cases involving someone who allegedly ran from the police. An officer might have enough information to temporarily stop someone without yet having enough information to arrest that person. Likewise, having grounds to stop someone does not automatically give an officer the right to conduct a full search of the person or a vehicle.
What Did the Supreme Court Say About Running From Police?
One of the leading cases on this issue actually originated in Chicago. In Illinois v. Wardlow, 528 U.S. 119 (2000), police officers were traveling through an area known for heavy narcotics trafficking. Wardlow saw the officers and fled. Officers pursued and stopped him. The United States Supreme Court concluded that the circumstances—including Wardlow’s unprovoked flight and the location in which it occurred—provided reasonable suspicion for an investigative stop. But there is an extremely important point about Wardlow that is sometimes overlooked: The Supreme Court was addressing reasonable suspicion for a temporary investigative stop—not whether flight automatically establishes probable cause for an arrest. The distinction matters. Illinois courts have likewise emphasized that flight must be considered along with the surrounding circumstances rather than treated as an automatic justification for every police action. Courts look at the entire situation when determining whether a stop was constitutionally permissible.
Running From Police Does Not Automatically Mean You Committed a Crime
People run from police for many different reasons. A person may be frightened. Someone may have had negative experiences with law enforcement in the past. A person may believe there is an outstanding traffic warrant. Someone may simply want to avoid talking to the police. None of those possibilities means that police officers must ignore flight. They do not. Flight can be considered when deciding whether reasonable suspicion exists. The point is that flight is a factor—not an automatic substitute for the constitutional requirements governing a detention, arrest, or search. The Illinois Appellate Court has recognized that running from police, without sufficient additional circumstances indicating criminal conduct, may be inadequate even to establish reasonable suspicion. The analysis depends heavily upon the facts surrounding the encounter.
Consider a Simple Example
Suppose a police officer is driving through a neighborhood at 2:00 in the afternoon. The officer sees a man standing on a sidewalk. There has been no report of a crime. The man does not match the description of a suspect. The officer does not see a weapon, drugs, or any illegal activity. The man sees the squad car and runs. The officer is certainly entitled to notice that behavior. But the legal question is whether the circumstances, considered together, justified what the officer did next.
Now change the facts. Suppose police just received a report that an armed robbery occurred one block away. The offender was described as a man wearing a black jacket and red baseball cap. Thirty seconds later, officers see a man matching that description nearby. He sees the squad car and immediately runs. That is an entirely different situation. His flight is no longer an isolated fact. It is being considered together with the reported crime, physical description, geographic proximity, and timing. This is why criminal cases involving searches and seizures are so fact-specific.
Can Police Search You Because You Ran?
Not automatically. If police lawfully conduct an investigative stop, they may sometimes perform a limited pat-down for weapons when the legal requirements for such a frisk are satisfied. That is not necessarily the same thing as conducting a complete evidentiary search of someone’s pockets and belongings. If officers develop probable cause and make a lawful arrest, different rules may permit a search incident to that arrest.But the sequence of events matters. When I review a case involving evidence recovered after a police chase, I want to know exactly what happened—and in what order:
-What did the officer see first?
-Why did the officer begin following the person?
-When did the person run?
-When did the officer order the person to stop?
-When did the physical detention occur?
-When was the evidence discovered?
Those details can determine whether a constitutional violation occurred.
Does Running From Police Allow Them to Search Your Car?
This is another area where people frequently misunderstand the law. Running away from the police does not automatically authorize officers to search your vehicle. Vehicle searches involve their own Fourth Amendment rules and exceptions. Depending upon the circumstances, officers might conduct a vehicle search based on probable cause, consent, a warrant, or another recognized exception to the warrant requirement. But the mere fact that a person ran away does not automatically turn the person’s vehicle into something the police are free to search.
Consider another example. A driver parks his vehicle, gets out, sees officers approaching, and runs. Police catch him two blocks away. The officers then return to the parked vehicle. Can they simply open the doors, glove compartment, center console, and containers inside because the driver ran? The answer cannot be determined merely by saying, “He ran.” The question becomes: What lawful basis did the officers have for searching the vehicle? Perhaps additional facts gave them probable cause. Perhaps evidence was visible from outside the vehicle. Perhaps another recognized exception applies. Or perhaps the search violated the Fourth Amendment. That is precisely the type of issue a criminal defense attorney should investigate.
What Happens When Police Conduct an Illegal Search?
When evidence is obtained as the result of an unconstitutional search or seizure, a criminal defense lawyer may file a motion to suppress evidence. A suppression hearing can become one of the most important proceedings in a criminal case. The defense may question the officers about where they were standing, what they observed, what information they possessed, when they began pursuing the defendant, when the defendant was detained, and what happened before the evidence was recovered. Police reports and body-camera footage can be particularly important because they may allow the defense to compare an officer’s testimony with what actually occurred. If a judge determines that evidence was obtained through an unconstitutional search or seizure, that evidence may be suppressed. In some cases, suppression of critical evidence can dramatically change the prosecution’s case.
The Police Found Something Illegal—Doesn’t That Make the Search Legal?
No. This is one of the most important concepts for defendants to understand. Suppose the police unlawfully stop someone and then discover cocaine in his pocket. The prosecution cannot necessarily justify the original stop by arguing, “But he actually had cocaine.” The constitutional analysis generally focuses on what the officers knew before the stop or search—not simply what they discovered afterward. Otherwise, constitutional protections against unreasonable searches would have very little meaning. The discovery of incriminating evidence does not automatically erase an earlier Fourth Amendment violation.
Every Case Depends on Its Own Facts
There is rarely a one-sentence answer to whether a particular police chase, detention, arrest, or search was constitutional. A defense lawyer needs to reconstruct the encounter carefully. In a case involving flight from police, some of the questions I would examine include:
- Why were the police initially interested in the defendant?
- Had a crime recently been reported?
- Did the defendant match a suspect description?
- Did officers observe any criminal activity before the defendant ran?
- Exactly when did the defendant begin running?
- Did the police already have their attention focused on the defendant before the flight?
- What commands did officers give?
- When was the defendant actually detained?
- What did officers know at that precise moment?
- When and where was the evidence discovered?
- Was a vehicle searched?
- What justification did police give for that search?
- Is there body-camera, dash-camera, surveillance, or other video evidence showing what happened?
Those questions matter because constitutional cases often turn on small details.
Charged With a Crime After Running From Police?
If you were arrested after allegedly running from police and officers recovered drugs, a firearm, stolen property, or other evidence, you should not assume that the evidence can automatically be used against you. The legality of the initial police encounter should be examined carefully.
I am Illinois criminal defense attorney James Dimeas, and I have extensive experience defending people accused of criminal offenses throughout the Chicago area, including cases involving illegal searches and seizures, vehicle searches, unlawful arrests, and motions to suppress evidence. A criminal charge tells you what the government is accusing you of doing. It does not tell you whether the police followed the Constitution while obtaining the evidence they intend to use against you. That is something a criminal defense attorney needs to investigate. If you have been arrested or charged with a crime after running from the police, contact the James Dimeas to discuss your case. I can review the circumstances surrounding the police encounter, determine whether there are Fourth Amendment issues, and evaluate whether the evidence against you may be subject to a motion to suppress.
Every case is different, and the specific facts surrounding the police stop, arrest, and search can make all the difference. I’ve successfully defended countless clients in these situations by challenging the legality of the stop and the search. If the police overstepped their authority, the evidence they obtained can be suppressed — which often leads to charges being reduced or dismissed.
Contact Attorney James Dimeas for Experienced Criminal Defense
If you’ve been charged with a crime after running from the police, don’t take chances with your future. I’m attorney James Dimeas, and I’ve been fighting for clients like you for over 32 years in Cook County, DuPage, Kane, and surrounding areas. I’ll aggressively defend your rights and work to get your charges dismissed or reduced.
James Dimeas, is a nationally-recognized, award-winning, criminal defense lawyer, with over-32 years of experience handling criminal cases in Chicago, Cook County, DuPage County, Kane County, and Lake County. Recently, James Dimeas was named a “Top 100 Criminal Defense Lawyer in the State of Illinois for the Year” by the American Society of Legal Advocates. James Dimeas was named a “Best DUI Attorney” and a “Best Criminal Defense Lawyer in Chicago” by Expertise. James Dimeas was named a “Top 100 Criminal Defense Trial Lawyer” by the National Trial Lawyers. The National Academy of Criminal Defense Attorneys awarded James Dimeas the “Top 10 Attorney Award for the State of Illinois.” James Dimeas is rated “Superb” by AVVO, the highest classification possible for any criminal defense lawyer in the United States. The American Institute of Criminal Law Attorneys recognized James Dimeas as a “10 Best Attorney for Client Satisfaction.” Attorney and Practice Magazine gave James Dimeas the “Top 10 Criminal Defense Attorney Award for Illinois.
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