Terry Stop


Definition of Terry Stop

Terry stop refers to the stopping of a person by any law enforcement agent based on their (reasonable) suspicion that the person might be involved in some criminal activity. A Terry stop is different to an arrest, where the level of suspicion is usually high.



Terry Stop Explained

The term "Terry stop" got its name from a famous court case, Terry v. Ohio, in 1968. The issue in the case was whether law-enforcing agencies should be allowed to detain a person and conduct a limited search in the absence of probable cause.





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